Showcase #100
Published and © by DC, May 1978
Title: “There Shall Come a Gathering”
Synopsis: When the Earth is hurled out of its orbit at light speed, “60 sensational super-stars” team to save the day.
Writer: Paul Kupperberg and Paul Levitz
Artist: Joe Staton
Review: Like many milestone issues featuring a large cast of characters, Showcase #100 is more writing exercise than story. But fans-turned-pros Paul Kupperberg and Paul Levitz put an acceptable plot into motion, and take obvious glee in playing with all the toys in the Showcase toy box. That sense of fun is contagious, despite threadbare characterization and minimal development of the villain. And their story gets a helping hand from artist Joe Staton, who delivers a career-best tour de force. His style would grow a little too cartoony over the years, but he strikes the right balance here.
Grade: B+
Second opinion: “A confusing story that attempted to team all the characters that had appeared in the Showcase.” – Hassan Yusuf, FantaCo’s Chronicle’s Series Annual #1, 1983 … “An action packed epic.” – The Slings & Arrows Comic Guide (second edition), 2003
Cool factor: The Staton art. At this point in his career, it’s possible to see how he could have grown into a Michael-Golden-style artist.
Not-so-cool factor: Cryll – some Silver Age characters just don’t age well.
Character quotable: “Shall we teleport down together, WG … and mingle molecules on the way?” – Kid Flash, trying to get his freak on in the face of pending doom
A word from the writer: “The plotting of the book took a full day’s effort – enough time for the same two writers to have crafted a year’s worth of an ordinary bi-monthly magazine.” – Paul Levitz, in this issues “Critic’s Corner” column
Editor’s note: This review was originally published by Comics Bronze Age on May 5, 2009.
