Brave & the Bold #95

Brave & the Bold #95 (On Sale: February 16, 1971), has a cover by Neal Adams and Dick Giordano.

This issue features "C.O.D. Corpse on Delivery" by Bob Haney and Nick Cardy. The team-up, only hinted at on the cover, is Batman and Plastic Man of Earth-1, someone who did not really exist up till now. Batman is hired by Ruby Ryder Inc. owner, Ruby Ryder to find her fiance Kyle Morgan, whom she claims went missing in South America. However, when Batman finds Morgan and brings him back to Ryder, she shoots him dead. Batman then goes on the trail to find Ryder when she escapes. Aided by a mysterious benefactor, Batman finds her in Morocco and takes her back to the States, where she is sentenced to death for the murder of Morgan.

However, Batman stops the execution when he reveals that Kyle Morgan isn't dead, but in the room and Morgan then reveals himself to be alive. He explains that he was once the hero known as Plastic Man, but he took on the guise of Kyle Morgan to try and live a normal life and had a relationship with Ruby Ryder. After learning that she was a power-seeking person, he left her and faked his death, which only fueled her revenge. With the mystery sorted out, Ruby's charges were lessened to attempted murder, however, she leaves the room scoffing at the concept of marrying a freak and tells the authorities to get in touch with her lawyers, while Plastic Man considers his future. Reprinted in Showcase Presents: The Brave and the Bold Batman Team-Ups Vol. 2 TPB (2008), Batman in the Brave and the Bold: The Bronze Age Omnibus Vol. 1 HC (2017), and Batman in the Brave and the Bold:The Bronze Age Vol. 2 TPB (2019).

Edited by Murray Boltinoff. I complain a lot about Boltioff as an editor, but B&B was one book I always loved and looked forward to, and he was the guy who let Neal Adams run wild with Batman, turning him from camp TV guy to the Dark Knight.

Plastic Man #10

Plastic Man #10 (On Sale: March 21, 1968) has a cover by Jack Sparling, a new logo and a death sentence in this its last issue.

"The Terrible Plastic Twin" is by Arnold Drake and Jack Sparling (I don't know what the insides looked like, but Sparling did a bang-up job with Plas on that cover). When Gordy is injured in an explosion Plastic Man donates his blood for a life-saving transfusion. The blood saves Gordy, but also gives him Plastic Man's powers. Gordy then tries to become a super-hero and show Plas how to fight crime. Instead, Plastic Man has to work extra hard to protect Gordy from getting into trouble. After Plas defeats killer doll-maker Marcel Mannequin at Madame DeLute's high society party, Gordy realizes that Plastic Man's methods, though unconventional, are effective.

Edited by Murray Boltinoff.

Plastic Man #9

Plastic Man #9 (On Sale: January 16, 1968) features another cover by Jack Sparling (was there an editor at this time that Sparling was not working for?)

"Joe, the Killer Pro" is by Arnold Drake and Jack Sparling. After Plastic Man foils several assassinations, Mr. Thisbey, head of an organization of assassins hires Killer Joe to go after Plas. First Joe tries to frame Plastic Man for murder, but fails. Joe then abandons subtlety and tries to kill Plas using several different strategies. Plastic Man outwits the killer saving his own life and exposing Thisbey is the process. Both the assassin and his boss are then taken to prison.

Edited by Murray Boltinoff.

Brave and the Bold #76

Brave and the Bold #76 (On Sale: December 26, 1967) sports Neal Adams' sixth cover of the month for DC, this one featuring the odd combination of Batman and Plastic Man.

"Doom, What is Thy Shape?" is by Bob Haney, Mike Sekowsky and Jack Abel. Batman begins tracking a series of bizarre crimes. The trail leads him to a subway tunnel where he encounters a group of Plastoids, androids made of plastic. The Plastoids and their creator, the Molder, trap Batman in plastic and leave him to be killed by a subway car. Fortunately Batman is rescued by Plastic Man who has been tracking the Molder too.
This story does not specify which Plastic Man appears here. The first Plastic Man originated on Earth-2 and immigrated to Earth-X. Plastic Man #7 establishes that the original Plas has aged and now has a son that is active on Earth-1. There is also a Plastic Man that is native to Earth-1. This story takes place on Earth-1 as evidenced by Batman's appearance. Since it occurs while the son of the original Plas is active, it shall be assumed that the Plastic Man in this story is the original Plastic Man's son. Later Brave and the Bold team-ups feature the Plastic Man who is native to Earth-1.

The back-up story featuring Robin, "The Man Called '50-50'," is a reprint from Star Spangled Comics #128 and is by David Reed and Jim Mooney.

Edited by George Kashdan.

Plastic Man #8

Plastic Man #8 (On Sale: November 21, 1967) has a cool cover by Carmine Infantino and Mike Esposito.

"The Unforgettable Wot's-Iz-Name" is by Arnold Drake and Jakc Sparling (See, I tild ya' he would be doing Plastic Man soon!). Plastic Man is crushed when a row of bleachers collapses on top of him. Physically he emerges unharmed, but a blow to the head gives him amnesia. It also causes him to mimic the behavior of the people around him. When he meets up with Waisel the Weasel, the crook is able to convince him that the police are actually crooks. He then leads Plastic Man on a string of robberies.

Edited by Murray Boltinoff.

Plastic Man #7

Plastic Man #7 (On Sale: September 21, 1967) has a cover by Carmine Infantino and Mike Esposito.

Inside we have "Plastic Man's Fantastic Old Man" by Arnold Drake and Winslow Mortimer. Three costumed criminals attempt to rob an art gallery. Plastic Man and his assistant try to stop the robbery, but fail. News about the robbery reaches Gordon Trueblood, who questions his friend Plastic Man about the crime. Plas reveals that it was his father, the original Plastic Man, who tried to stop the crime. Plastic Man, Jr. and Gordy then visit a rest home owned by the senior Plastic Man. He explains that the criminal leader, the King of Spades, also owns the mortgage on the rest home and is trying to take it over. The elder Plas has been unable to prove that the King is a criminal.

The two Plastic Men team up to trap the King of Spades and his partners. Their plan almost succeeds, but Gordy loses the evidence against them. Then the King takes over the rest home.

Edited by Murray Boltinoff.

Plastic Man #6

Plastic Man #6 (On Sale: July 25, 1967) has a cover by Carmine Infantino and Mike Esposito.

Inside we have "The Sly, Slippery, Slithery Sphinx" by Arnold Drake and Winslow Mortimer. A criminal known as the Sphinx upstages Dr. Dome and makes him look foolish. When the Sphinx then tries to kill Plastic Man, Dr. Dome forms an alliance with Plas because he wants the honor of killing him himself.

"Menace of the Mad, Mad, Mod Goldzinger" is also by Arnold Drake and Winslow Mortimer. When Plastic Man and Mike visit a dance club, the are on the scene for a robbery by Goldzinger, a crook that can magnetically attract gold. Plastic Man pursues and catches the crook. Before he can be turned over to police, Madame DeLute frees Goldzinger and hires him to kill Plastic Man.

Edited by Murray Boltinoff.

Plastic Man #5

Plastic Man #5 (On Sale: May 23, 1967) has a cover by Carmine Infantino and Mike Esposito.

Inside we have "The 1,001 Plas-Sassins" by Arnold Drake and Winslow Mortimer.The Society to Assassinate Plastic Man offers a five million dollar reward for the death of Plastic Man. Many assassins try to earn the reward including international criminals Jean Le Feet, Reginald Ratfinque, and Ivan Byturnozov. Although Plas escapes the various dangers, he becomes annoyed by the constant threats.

Plastic Man disguises himself as a criminal called the Assassin and stages his own death.

Edited by Murray Boltinoff.

Inferior Five #2

Inferior Five #2 (On Sale: March 16, 1967) has a cover by Mike Sekowsky and Mike Esposito. For some reason I like this Sekowsky cover more than the JLA cover from two days ago.

Inside we have our cover story "The House-Hunting Heroes" by E. Nelson Bridwell, Mike Sekowsky and Mike Esposito. The Inferior Five seek a new headquarters after an awful songwriter barges into their current meeting place. After purchasing a new Inferi-Car, the team visits the Batson Building, a prospective headquarters.

At the same time in the penthouse of the Batson Building, Rod Rickard conducts an experiment which bestows himself, his assistant, his wife, and her kid brother with super powers. The foursome form the Kookie Quartet and promise to take over the crime-fighting duties in Megalopolis.

Before the Inferior Five can meet the Quartet's challenge, a bank robbery is committed. The perpetrators are King-Size and the Tsetse Fly, a pair of crooks with size changing abilities. Guest-stars Plastic Man and Invisible Kid.

Edited by Jack Miller.

Plastic Man #4

Plastic Man #4 (On Sale: March 16, 1967) has a cover drawn by Carmine Infantino and Mike Esposito.

The book-length "Dr. Dome's Dame of Doom" was written by the recently departed Arnold Drake (we miss you Arnold) and was drawn by Winslow Mortimer. In it, Dr. Dome hires Madam Merciless to bring Plastic Man under his control. The woman attempts to hypnotize Plas. Her first attempt fails, but Plastic Man plays along. After drugging Plas, Madam Merciless gets another chance to bring him under control with the help of her witch doctors.

Character Background (from Wikipedia)

Plastic Man (Patrick "Eel" O'Brian) is a comic-book superhero originally published by Quality Comics and later acquired by DC Comics. Created by writer-artist Jack Cole, he first appeared in Police Comics #1 (August 1941). Plastic Man's powers are derived from an accident in which his body was bathed in an unknown industrial chemical mixture that also entered into his bloodstream through a gunshot wound. This caused a body-wide mutagenic process that transformed his physiology.

Plastic Man can stretch his limbs and body to superhuman shapes, lengths and sizes, with flexibility and coordination extraordinarily beyond the natural limits of the human body. He can become entirely flat so that he can slip under a door, use his fingers to pick conventional locks, pose as inanimate objects such as vehicles or pieces of furniture, and disguise himself by changing the shape of his face. There is no known limit to how far he can stretch his body. The only limitation he has relates to color, which he cannot change without intense concentration, so he is usually limited to his trademark colour scheme of red, yellow, black and flesh-coloured.

One of Quality Comics' signature characters during the period historians and fans call the Golden Age of Comic Books, Plastic Man can stretch his body into any imaginable form. His adventures were known for their quirky, offbeat structure and surreal slapstick humor. When Quality Comics was shut down in 1956, DC Comics acquired many of its characters, integrating Plastic Man into the mainstream DC universe. The character has starred in several short-lived DC series (this being one of them), as well as a Saturday morning cartoon series in the early 1980s.

Edited by Murray Boltinoff.