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DC 100 Page Super Spectacular

DC 100 Page Super Spectacular is an American comic book series published by DC Comics from 1971 through 1973, featuring only reprints initially and later including new stories. The "100 Page" count included both sides of the front and back covers as pages. Each numbered issue appearing under this title featured a wrap-around cover with all editorial content and no advertisements. Versions after late 1973 included advertisements.

DC 100-Page Super Spectacular
DC 100-Page Super Spectacular #DC-13 (June 1972), art by Neal Adams.
Publication information
PublisherDC Comics
ScheduleVaried
FormatOngoing series
Publication date1971 - November 1973
No. of issues19
DC 100-Page Super Spectacular #4–6
DC 100-Page Super Spectacular #DC–7 – DC–13
100-Page Super Spectacular #DC–14 – DC–22
Editor(s)E. Nelson Bridwell

Publication history

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The DC 100 Page Super Spectacular series was the "next wave" of "Giant" comics featuring reprint stories in the company's vast trove of tales during a 1971 editorial transition at DC Comics, when the Superman titles were taken over by Julius Schwartz after the retirement of Mort Weisinger, who had overseen all Superman-related comics since the early 1950s. The first DC Giant was the "80 Page Giant", which ran as an annual and then alternately as its own title and as part of regular, ongoing titles throughout the 1960s. Comics prices increased quickly in the early part of the 1970s. As page count dropped to accommodate the 25¢ price, the 80 Page Giant became simply "Giant" comics and DC then quickly switched to a monthly 52-page format at the 25¢ price point and DC 100 Page Super Spectacular series became the standard for "Giant" comics.[1]

Editorial

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This comic series is one of E. Nelson Bridwell's contributions to DC's history and its growing array of characters.[2] As DC acquired the rights to Quality Comics characters, Fawcett Comics characters, and other folded comics companies' characters, a quick way to secure their rights was by publishing reprints featuring these characters. DC characters such as Johnny Quick made reappearances in these reprints and sometimes gained some popularity among readers. These were stand-alone stories, all written to capture any first-time reader when they were originally published, so the reader needed no real introduction to many of these characters. There were brief synopses provided on the inside cover, identifying and giving background to the characters shown on the wraparound cover and a table of contents that provided any information one would need on Golden Age characters that had not been seen in a while. Johnny Quick makes the first of what will turn out to be numerous appearances in many of the 100 Pagers. Quality Comics characters such as Max Mercury (known in the Golden Age as "Quicksilver", and named such on the wraparound cover of DC-11), the Black Condor, the Ray and Doll Man made their first DC Comics appearances in these books.

Collectibility

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While the books languished in relative obscurity in the collector's market for the first 20-odd years of their existence, their Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide estimated value from 1973–1995 did not exceed $3.00, these comic books - particularly the first three issues - have become some of the most sought-after Bronze Age books. Their Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide estimated value has increased from approximately $45.00 to hundreds of dollars each in the 1997-2006 editions. The first three issues were published in relatively small numbers and were entirely editorial content. DC-5, which was a romance comic and, therefore, published in very small numbers, has been heralded as the "rarest of all Bronze Age books" by the Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide. The first issue to feature super-heroes was DC-6 which had a wraparound cover by Neal Adams featuring the Justice League of America and Justice Society of America. This issue also listed every comic book character that DC owned in all of the spaces that otherwise would have been occupied by house ads. For the remainder of the series, super-heroes would dominate the title.

Numbering

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The series is numbered oddly. There were no issues 1, 2, or 3.[3] The first three issues published (4, 5, and 6) had subtitles — the first two of which were later used for ongoing comics series. The title ran as a part of regular, ongoing series titles for seven issues with the prefix "DC" added to the numbering (DC-7 through DC-13) in addition to the masthead title's own numbering (e.g., Superman #245 was also DC-7). It reverted to its own title again (DC-14 through DC-22) utilizing as cover titles the existing titles of regular, ongoing series, but not being part of those regular series' numbering. A planned "DC-23" was mentioned in the letters column of DC-22 by editor E. Nelson Bridwell, but it became Shazam! #8[4] and the Super Spectacular's own numbering disappeared, while advertisements were added. The "DC 100 Page Super Spectacular" title itself was used on another 96 issues of varying regular, ongoing titles through 1975.[5] It began to become a regular version of selected ongoing titles for about a year and then increased its cost to 60¢ with the publishing date of April–May 1974 and continued this pricing until its end. The last 100-Page Super Spectaculars were published with a cover date of March–April 1975.[6][7]

The issues

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Issue Date Title Notes
4 1971 Weird Mystery Tales Reprints stories from My Greatest Adventure #8, 12, 14, 15, and 20; Sensation Mystery #110 and 116; House of Secrets #2; The Phantom Stranger #1; Tales of the Unexpected #15 and 24; and House of Mystery #49.[8]
5 1971 Love Stories Reprints stories from Young Love #60 and Girls' Romances #99, 100, and 130.[9]
6 1971 World's Greatest Super-Heroes Reprints stories from Justice League of America #21 and 22; More Fun Comics #55; Adventure Comics #190; Action Comics #146; The Brave and the Bold #36; and a previously unpublished Golden Age Wildcat story.[10]
DC-7 December 1971–
January 1972		 Superman #245 Reprints stories from Superman #87 and 167; Kid Eternity #3; The Atom #3; All-Star Western #117; Detective Comics #66; and Mystery in Space #89.[11]
DC-8 January 1972 Batman #238 Reprints stories from Batman #70 and 75; My Greatest Adventure #80; Police Comics #14; Sensation Comics #57; Adventure Comics #276 and 324; and a previously unpublished Golden Age Atom story.[12]
DC-9 February 1972 Our Army at War #242 Reprints stories from G.I. Combat #44, 64, 68, and 108; Captain Storm #3; All-American Men of War #87; Our Fighting Forces #57; and Our Army at War #58.[13]
DC-10 March 1972 Adventure Comics #416 Reprints stories from Action Comics #309, 310, and 324; Flash Comics #86; Wonder Woman #28; Police Comics #17; and Star Spangled Comics #90.[14]
DC-11 April 1972 The Flash #214 Reprints stories from The Flash #122, 145, and 155; National Comics #67; Adventure Comics #179; Showcase #37; and a previously unpublished Golden Age Flash story.[15]
DC-12 May 1972 Superboy #185 Reprints stories from Adventure Comics #208, 289, and 323; Star-Spangled Comics #55; The Brave and the Bold #60; Hit Comics #46; and Sensation Comics #1.[16]
DC-13 June 1972 Superman #252 Reprints stories from Action Comics #47; Superman #17 and 146; More Fun Comics #57; Flash Comics #24; Crack Comics #18; Adventure Comics #67; and Smash Comics #17.[17]
DC-14 March 1973 Batman Reprints stories from Detective Comics #31, 32, and 156; Showcase #34; Blackhawk #10; Sensation Comics #4 and 6; and Doll Man #31.[18]
DC-15 March 1973 Superboy Reprints stories from Adventure Comics #81, 270, and 273; Detective Comics #65; Superboy #57, 63, and 130; The Hawk and the Dove #3; and House of Mystery #164.[19]
DC-16 April 1973 Sgt. Rock Reprints stories from Our Army at War #136; Captain Storm #1; All-American Men of War #82; Star Spangled War Stories #84; Our Fighting Forces #46; and G.I. Combat #88.[20]
DC-17 June 1973 Justice League of America Reprints stories from Justice League of America #23 and 43; All Star Comics #37; and Adventure Comics #65.[21]
DC-18 July 1973 Superman Reprints stories from Superman #25, 97, and 162; Flash Comics #90; The Atom #8; World's Finest Comics #5; Adventure Comics #57; and Crack Comics #42.[22]
DC-19 August 1973 Tarzan Reprints stories from the Tarzan newspaper strip by Russ Manning.[23]
DC-20 September 1973 Batman Reprints stories from Detective Comics #66, 68, and 80; All-American Comics #88; Flash Comics #95; Adventure Comics #66; Blackhawk #13; More Fun Comics #66; Sensation Comics #71[24]
DC-21 October 1973 Superboy Reprints stories from Superboy #50 and 94; Action Comics #313; Adventure Comics #117 and 332; Kid Eternity #9; and The Brave and the Bold #54.[25]
DC-22 November 1973 The Flash Reprints stories from The Flash #134 and 135; Adventure Comics #129; All-Flash #13; and Detective Comics #359.[26]

Other comics in the Super Spectacular format

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Issues of on-going series which used the 100 Page Super Spectacular format include:[6][27]

Revival: DC 100-Page Comic Giant

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In 2018, DC revived the 100-page format, featuring several concurrently running titles focusing on various DC characters, as well as a handful of one-shot issues. Monthly titles often feature between four and six separate serialized stories, reprinting previous material and providing new stories. One-shots may feature as many as nine stories, though they may all be reprinted material.

The revival titles were initially a Wal-Mart exclusive, which ended in October 2019. Certain issues still continue to have location exclusive covers. Titles include:

References

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  1. ^ Eury, Michael (July 2015). "A Look at DC's Super Specs". Back Issue! (#81). Raleigh, North Carolina: TwoMorrows Publishing: 4–10.
  2. ^ Eury, p. 11
  3. ^ Eury, pp. 8-9: "The reasons for this numbering are unclear, and those DC editors and executives who might have shed light on this conundrum are no longer with us".
  4. ^ "Shazam! #8". Grand Comics Database.
  5. ^ McAvennie, Michael; Dolan, Hannah, ed. (2010). "1970s". DC Comics Year By Year A Visual Chronicle. London, United Kingdom: Dorling Kindersley. p. 158. ISBN 978-0-7566-6742-9. To help combat its own growing costs, DC Comics...reduced the total amount of books produced by more than 25 percent. A portion of that drastic drop-off, however, was attributed to a huge increase in 100-page super-spectaculars and giants. For example, marrying Superman's supporting cast into one Superman Family series saved publishing costs on three individual titles alone. {{cite book}}: |first2= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  6. ^ a b Voiles, Mike (2012). "The Guide to DC Giants". Mike's Amazing World of DC Comics. Archived from the original on November 29, 2015. Retrieved November 29, 2015.
  7. ^ Eury, p. 19
  8. ^ "DC 100-Page Super Spectacular #4". Grand Comics Database.
  9. ^ "DC 100-Page Super Spectacular #5". Grand Comics Database.
  10. ^ "DC 100-Page Super Spectacular #6". Grand Comics Database.
  11. ^ "DC 100-Page Super Spectacular #DC-7". Grand Comics Database.
  12. ^ DC 100-Page Super Spectacular #DC-8 at the Grand Comics Database
  13. ^ DC 100-Page Super Spectacular #DC-9 at the Grand Comics Database
  14. ^ DC 100-Page Super Spectacular #DC-10 at the Grand Comics Database
  15. ^ DC 100-Page Super Spectacular #DC-11 at the Grand Comics Database
  16. ^ DC 100-Page Super Spectacular #DC-12 at the Grand Comics Database
  17. ^ DC 100-Page Super Spectacular #DC-13 at the Grand Comics Database
  18. ^ 100-Page Super Spectacular #DC-14 at the Grand Comics Database
  19. ^ 100-Page Super Spectacular #DC-15 at the Grand Comics Database
  20. ^ 100-Page Super Spectacular #DC-16 at the Grand Comics Database
  21. ^ 100-Page Super Spectacular #DC-17 at the Grand Comics Database
  22. ^ 100-Page Super Spectacular #DC-18 at the Grand Comics Database
  23. ^ 100-Page Super Spectacular #DC-19 at the Grand Comics Database
  24. ^ 100-Page Super Spectacular #DC-20 at the Grand Comics Database
  25. ^ 100-Page Super Spectacular #DC-21 at the Grand Comics Database
  26. ^ 100-Page Super Spectacular #DC-22 at the Grand Comics Database
  27. ^ Eury, pp. 20-31
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