Joshua, John :: Golden Age Team-Up Project - DC Comics Presents

DC Comics Presents #99 - Superman and Firebrand - homage to Iron Man issue #108

Artist: Bambos Georgiou (All)

2 Comments - 653 Views - 0 Like

DC Comics Presents #99 - Superman and Firebrand - homage to Iron Man issue #108 Comic Art

Additional Images:

Pencil roughs

Iron Man #108 - source cover

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Artwork Details

Title:	DC Comics Presents #99 - Superman and Firebrand - homage to Iron Man issue #108
Artist:	Bambos Georgiou (All)
Media Type:	Pen and Ink
Art Type:	Commission
For Sale Status:	NFS
Views:	653
Likes on CAF:	0 1
Comments:	2
Added to Site:	5/17/2022
Comic Art Archive:

Description

Apologies for posting on consecutive days - I wasn't expecting these to arrive so close together.

New Golden Age Team-Up Project commission - and the second in my short diversion into DC Comics Presents covers - issue #99, pairing Superman with Rod (Firebrand) Reilly, battling the Nazi Murder Machine (from DC Special #29 and Secret Origins #31). Art by Bambos Georgiou, adapted from the Keith Pollard & Joe Sinnott cover to Iron Man #108.

November 1941 - and Rod Reilly is in trouble! In his costumed identity of Firebrand, he's investigating the apparent kidnapping of a prominent inventor and electrical expert, as reported by the Daily Star, and finds evidence to suggest that Bundists are behind the abduction, tracking them to an abandoned construction plant on the outskirts of Metropolis. Unfortunately he's not the only one on the trail of the missing man - Daily Star reporter Lois Lane has also uncovered the links to the Bundist cell, and as she arrives, she's spotted by the Nazi sympathisers and taken prisoner!

Watching from the rafters, Reilly sees the Bundist leader threaten to kill Miss Lane if the inventor doesn't finish the job of putting together the giant robot the Nazis have been constructing - the Murder Machine! Firebrand leaps into action and starts attacking the Bundists - but a lucky swipe with a wrench catches him on the skull, knocking him unconscious!

When he recovers, he finds himself also held hostage, and the inventor finishing the job of assembling the Murder Machine, throwing the final switches and bringing it to life! The Bundists instruct it to attack and destroy a nearby defence plant - but before that, to kill the three hostages. The robot advances, and...

...the Man Of Steel crashes through the wall to the rescue! Trailing the missing Lois Lane, Superman had chanced upon the hiding place of the kidnappers, and leaps into the fray, pummeling the Murder Machine! Meanwhile, Firebrand frees himself and - at her urging - unties the plucky reporter before dashing to Superman's aid, only to be knocked back by the giant robot.

As Firebrand is trapped under some wreckage, Superman redoubles his efforts and, with a mighty blow, disables the Murder Machine, which starts to spark and smoke! The Man Of Steel scoops up Firebrand and Lois Lane, together with the inventor, and exits the derelict building just as the Murder Machine explodes.

With the threat ended, Lois Lane interviews the captured scientist, who tells her that held recognised early on that the blueprints for the giant robot had a fatal flaw, and that it was always going to fail - but he hadn't realised just how explosive that failure would be!

More - next issue!

I love the clunky retro design Joe Staton came up with for the Murder Machine, but it's always worried me that, if the Nazis had a robot which could defeat the Flash and Green Lantern (and Batman, in the pre-Crisis version of the JSA's origin), why was it never seen again? So this is my solution - the robot was so badly-designed that it was just a stroke of luck that it managed to overcome the three JSA members, and presumably self-destructed shortly afterwards.

Incidentally, there's a story behind the Firebrand logo used here - the logo I used on B&B #210, featuring the female Firebrand, appeared a few times in All-Star Squadron issues, and Roy Thomas referred to it as "the best of the original Firebrand logos", so I knew there was at least one other one I might be able to use.

But only when I went digging did I discover that Rod Reilly - who was only seen in 13 issues in the Golden Age - actually had a different logo in each of his appearances, so I had a massive number to pick from. In my view, this was the second-best logo, and helpfully Bambos was happy to use it.

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About the Owner

	John Joshua
Joined:	May 2015
Last Login:	September 2025
Country:	UNITED KINGDOM
On CAF:	John's Want List Artworks Commented On Liked Art Site Activity on CAF

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Marcus Wai
Member Since 2005

1 - Posted on 5/17/2022

It creates a lot of wear and tear on all those gears to stand with such a wide stance. Poor engineering on their part. Georgiou never skimps on backgrounds and makes the action even more high stakes!

Aidan (Re-Legion ) Lacy
Member Since 2005

1 - Posted on 5/17/2022

I remember buying that Iron Man issue because it was so rare to see a YJ guest appearance, This is a Firecracker of a homage.

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