A question about Starman

[babyblob]

So I am reading early adventure comics and got to the stories with Starman. but I am a bit confused on the Powers of his Gravity Rod. if someone would let me know just what the Rod's Powers are I would appreciate it.

Thank you in advance.

[Ascended]

Well if you're reading the early Golden Age stuff, I'm not sure how much consistency there is. Back then powers and power levels were pretty flexible, and I haven't read enough of the classic JSA type stuff to know how deeply Starman was impacted by that.

Generally, the cosmic staff/rod provides flight, energy blasts, and force fields. Typically these are somewhere between the mid- to high-power ranges. We've had Starman hold his own against Shazam, for example. As an aside, I'm relatively certain that back in the day, Starman was the only hero who reached that kind of power with nothing but human ingenuity; no lab accident providing super powers, no magic ring or helmet, no exotic matter from space.

Occasionally a writer will also delve into the idea of the cosmic staff/rod being an energy source, so they'll, I dunno, hook it up to power a machine or explore "clean energy" concepts. But mostly it's flight, blasts, and force fields.

In the 00's era Event "DC 1 Million" they made a big deal out of Ted Knight being famous, even in the 853rd century, not for his career as Starman but for his contributions to science and renewable energy.

[babyblob]

Thank you for the answer. Yea the 1940's stuff is pretty inconsistent.

[Ascended]

no problem.

If you're interested in Starman, you have an interesting journey. There's been a ton of those guys, and not all of them have any connection to the Knight family.

I'd recommend James Robinson's Starman series from the 90's. It's largely considered a must-read. Fantastic stuff that ties into everyone to use the name, the Knight family legacy (they're basically the Kennedy's of the DCU), just all around an excellent title. It's hard to track down but there's six omnibuses that, while pricey, are absolutely and utterly worth the cost.

[Jekyll]

Second, the above post!

James Robinson’s Starman is my all time favorite run in comics! While the omnibuses are tricky and expensive to track down, the individual TPB and comics are not. I easily collected the entire series with two lot purchases on eBay.

[babyblob]

Thanks you guys. I will for sure real them. Starman is quickly becoming a favorite of mine.

[babyblob]

Are there any other JSA solo series?

[Bored at 3:00AM]

Are there any other JSA solo series?

Sandman Mystery Theater ran for several years, but it's more pulpy than superhero-y.

There was a great Alan Scott one-shot called Brightest Day that is absolutely worth checking out. It's got the original Green Lantern's first battle with Solomon Grundy.
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[Ascended]

Are there any other JSA solo series?

Sandman Mystery Theater, definitely.

Power Girl had a solo that ran for, I dunno, two-three years or so before the New52 reboot in 2011. It was a pretty good series I thought, more fun and less serious than a lot of what was on the shelves at the time but it wasn't a straight up comedy. I liken it to a MCU movie; there'll be jokes and sight gags and a lot of action, but actual character development and drama isn't completely unheard of either.

Stargirl debuted in a solo called Stars & STRIPE. That was Geoff Johns' first real gig, I think. It was fun and cute, but not something I'd call a must-read. It's before Courtney joins the JSA or gets the cosmic staff, if I remember right. I only read a few issues. But it does tie into Starman/Golden Age history so might be worth a look?

Hawkman has had a bunch of titles over the years....but if you don't know, that character is a quagmire of broken continuity with tons of contradicting elements in play. If you want to read Hawkman, I'd recommend the prestige miniseries Hawkworld (late 80's/early 90's?), the monthly that followed by the same name, the solo that Johns wrote (early 00's?), and the current title being published now. Of them all, Hawkworld (mini and ongoing) was my favorite, but YMMV.

Mr. Terrific had a short lived solo in the New52 (2011) that you should absolutely not read, ever, because it was so awful. His current title, The Terrifics, is technically a team book inspired very heavily by the Fantastic Four, but is a really solid book that just keeps getting better and focuses on Terrific to such a degree it's almost a solo. Definitely recommend that one.

This might not interest you, but there was a short lived Hourman solo back in the late 90's/early 00's. Fantastic book but it wasn't about the original Hourman, nor his son. It was about a android from the deep future with strong ties to that family, and the android was a part of the JSA at the time, but it's quite a departure from the original version. Damn good book though, one of those hidden gems that was too good for the regular market to notice.

And this is kind of a cheat but I'm gonna mention it anyway. Superman Smashes the Klan. Superman did hang with the JSA sometimes, and this book is set in the 1940's and is a re-telling of a famous radio show where Superman went up against the KKK. It's not an ongoing, just a mini, and there aren't any other heroes involved, but if you like that old school, retro JSA aesthetic, then you want to read Smashes the Klan. It's like a Pixar movie in comic form, it's aimed mostly at kids but is smart enough to entertain grumpy old bastards like me, and just might be the best book DC published in recent memory.

This is....probably not what you want, but the series Damage from the early 90's (not the one from a couple years ago, totally different thing). Damage is a solo about a teenager who gets incredible, explosive powers he can barely contain, and his hunt to discover his origins. The Golden Age heroes play a part in the story (I won't spoil how, just in case you check it out) and Damage would become a member of the JSA in the 00's. Probably not quite what you want, but I figured I'd toss it out there.

Another great book that has slim ties to the JSA but probably doesn't fit what you want is Manhunter, from the mid-00's. Not the green alien who hangs with the League, this is Kate Spencer, a lawyer who gets fed up with supervillains escaping justice through technicalities in the law and goes vigilante. Utterly fantastic book almost nobody was reading. So good that when DC tried to cancel it, they got so many letters from fans they changed plans and kept the book going. Twice. That's unheard of and shows just how good the book was. Kate's got some thin ties to the JSA (including the Knight family, I think?) but, aside from this just being a great title, probably not what you're looking for.

Not a solo and not a ongoing, but have you read New Frontier? If not, make that the next thing you read.