Case Closed! The DC Detectives Appreciation

[Lee Stone]

Apologies to Angel & the Ape, Detective Chimp, Lois Lane and Maggie Sawyer.
The image was pretty full and I chose to leave them out.
I left Ms. Tree out because DC doesn't own her. And while Nathaniel Dusk is questionable as he hasn't appeared anywhere, to my knowledge, outside of his minis, he did appear in the Who's Who.
And I probably missed a few here and there.

The thread is inspired by the recent appearance of the Mystery Analysts of Gotham City in an issue of Scooby Doo Team-Up.

In that issue, the line-up consisted of Batman, Robin, Doctor Thirteen, Jason Bard, Jonny Double, Slam Bradley, Kaye Daye, Mysto the Magician, Roy Raymond and Ace the Bat-Hound. As well as mentioned former members Detective Chimp and Sam Simeon (of Angel & the Ape), which were two of the 27 photos on the wall of members.

A real DC team of detectives, the Mystery Analysts first appeared in Batman #164 waaaay back in 1964 and included Kaye Daye and Commissioner Gordon along with Ralph Vern (who soon left), Art Saddows, Martin Tellman and District Attorney Danton.
Only appearing in seven stories, their last appearance was in Batman #295 in 1977.

Appearances:
Batman #164
Batman #168
Batman #174
Batman #181
Batman #194
Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen #111 -supposedly, Clark Kent was also a member (go figure!), but we'll assume it was honorary
Batman #295
Scooby Doo Team-Up #2

And, if Clark was indeed a member, I'd like to assume that Ralph and Sue Dibney (the Nick and Nora Charles of DC) were, also.

[Denirac]

Are we counting Rorschach amongst these guys? He does a lot of Detective Work, and at the very least will be in the DCU doing so for Doomsday Clock.

[Lee Stone]

Are we counting Rorschach amongst these guys? He does a lot of Detective Work, and at the very least will be in the DCU doing so for Doomsday Clock.

Since he's really just a re-imagined Question and he keeps with the style, I'd say sure.

I drew the line at masked crimefighters like Midnight, Crimson Avenger, The King and their ilk, as I see them falling more under 'Mystery Men'.

John Jones (Martian Manhunter's alias) and Question got included because they're more detective-oriented than super-hero.
I'd probably include the Golden Age Sandman, along with Dian Belmont, also. Especially as written in Sandman Mystery Theatre.
I just didn't include him in the picture because I wanted to keep them all close to the same time period.

And although I didn't include Lois Lane, I've always felt that she had a Nancy Drew quality about her and could easily be considered an 'Amateur Sleuth'. Especially in the late Silver Age/early Bronze Age.

[MajorHoy]

I'd love to see DC come out with a new series featuring somebody like Slam Bradley or Tim Trench.
I'd suggest Jason Bard as well, but he didn't come off as heroic when he showed up in Batman Eternal. (Then again, Slam Bradley may have his problems because of a depiction of him in New Super-Man.)

Ah, well.

[MajorHoy]

... The thread is inspired by the recent appearance of the Mystery Analysts of Gotham City in an issue of Scooby Doo Team

And from their first appearance,

[Güicho]

The image was pretty full and I chose to leave them out.

Not sure what image? As none shows up for me?

The thread is inspired by the recent appearance of the Mystery Analysts of Gotham City in an issue of Scooby Doo Team-Up.
In that issue, the line-up consisted of Batman, Robin, Doctor Thirteen, Jason Bard, Jonny Double, Slam Bradley, Kaye Daye, Mysto the Magician, Roy Raymond and Ace the Bat-Hound. As well as mentioned former members Detective Chimp and Sam Simeon (of Angel & the Ape),

Sadly often missing (and somewhat criminally neglected by DC and fans) is Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster's (under the semi-anagramic pseudonym of Leger and Reuths) other classic creation:
Dr. Occult, aka The Ghost Detective, aka The Mystic Detective.

One of the earliest character created for DC Comics. Whose milieux has somewhat been usurped by Constantine.
DC's first and original Mystic Detective, should have been a (gum)shoe-in for a Scooby Doo Team-Up.

[Lee Stone]

Postimage, the site I use for image hosting, recently changed their website.
I'll update the link.

[MajorHoy]

[The Odd Man]

Yeah, I'd read a series or mini-series starring non-super powered detectives. Hell, let batman have a cameo, realize he's not needed and take off.

[Güicho]

Postimage, the site I use for image hosting, recently changed their website.
I'll update the link.

Nice! You're image opens for me now. That is quite a collection. And allot of trench-coats.
I really do like the last two on the bottom righ - Rene Montoya and Crispus Allen and always thought they should have their own Gotham Paranormal Crime Unit book, as Question & Answer.

[MajorHoy]

Jason Bard - from Who's Who: The Definitive Directory of the DC Universe Vol. XI (January 1986)


from Detective Comics #425 (July 1972)

[MajorHoy]

Bobo / Detective Chimp - from Who's Who: The Definitive Directory of the DC Universe Vol. VI (August 1985)


from The Adventures of Rex the Wonder Dog #4 (July-August 1952)

[Lee Stone]

Jonni Thunder is such a missed opportunity for DC.

She originated during a time where creating new versions of old characters by race or gender swapping (herself, Wildcat, Dr. Midnight, John Stewart, Dr. Light, Marvel's Captain Marvel) was seen more as just another way to expand the pool of characters. Probably because the characters seemed more fleshed out back then and DC didn't artificially promote them, which made them fell less exploitative. They were just new characters and treated just like any other new character.

But with a dire need for more non-superhero comics, Jonni would be a perfect candidate for a hard-biting crime drama series, ala Gotham Central, 100 Bullets, Sandman Mystery Theatre and Question. And... DC does have Bendis now. She would be right up his alley.

[MajorHoy]

Slam Bradley - from Who's Who: The Definitive Directory of the DC Universe Vol. XXI (November 1986)


from Catwoman Secret Files and Origins #1 (2002)


Slam Bradley by Darwyn Cooke
(art from Heritage Auctions (HA) site)

[MajorHoy]

Christopher Chance: The Human Target - from Who's Who: The Definitive Directory of the DC Universe Vol. X (December 1985)


from Who's Who in the DC Universe #4 (November 1990)


from Action Comics #419 (December 1972)