Batman in the Sixties

Batman in the Sixties

1999

The last of my 3 Batman TPBs is Batman In The Sixties, published in 1999. The Sixties was not a kind decade for Batman comics. The waning days of the creative, but corny, Batman family tales were winding down and then the “New Look” took over, which was a nice try but which resulted in some stilted and unmemorable tales. The one good thing I can say about the “New Look” is that it served as a transition from the corny Batman story to the more realistic style of the 1970’s, specifically the Denny O’Neil and Neal Adams run. A hint of the stronger 1970’s tales is revealed in the last tale in this collection.
The book starts with a forward by Adam West, appropriate for a sixties collection. Unfortunately it is brief and not insightful. Unlike his autobiography, which was a hoot.
The stories are presented in chronological order

1966 – Batman 181 – Beware of Poison Ivy by Robert Kanigher, Sheldon Moldoff & Joe Giella. Kanigher, the man who brought the world Black Canary, Rose and the Thorn, and the Black Canary-Batman relationship, debuts his newest super bad female, Poison Ivy. Until I read this collection I never knew Poison Ivy was a Kanigher creation. Also introduced in this story are 3 other notorious female crooks, Dragon Fly, Silken Spider and Tiger Moth. They are never seen again. Four villainous babes drawn in an unappealing manner. And Poison Ivy’s motive in her first appearance? Jealousy that her crimes aren’t as well known as those of the aforementioned 3 rivals. Poison Ivy is a strong concept as time has proven and some of it shows through here, but she had nowhere to go but up after this debut;