Comic Book Hinterlands

The world of comics is filled with wonders. But in the outskirts resides the odd and forgotten. The comic that never played well with others. The story that was converted into another medium. The character that probably should never have had its own comic. Welcome to the distant lands of comic books. “Welcome to the Comic Book Hinterlands”. In our first issue, we present the first time “Spider-Man” was a live action TV Show. He was a character for three seasons on the “Electric Company” where he battled goofy villains and helped kids learn how to read. That Spidey was something special. We look at episodes with a withering eye. Well, we have fun with this delightful series. The stories are recounted and analyzed. Why do a deep dive in a segment from a 45-year-old educational show? Because “Spidey Super Stories” were amazingly well written and so much fun. This is the first stop on the long tour of the misplaced history of comics.

What is the best format for comic strips? The easy answer is in a newspaper in the funnies section. That is the one most will come up with. But there used to be another place where you could read comic strips: mass market paperbacks. They were a big deal for several decades. They seemed to be a well-made receptacle for all the jokes and adventures. This is the story of a bookstore that sold nothing but these comic strip paperbacks. The owner goes into long monologues about each book that might be purchased. He talks about the best format and how things had to change because strips and paperbacks are not always in synch. A funny story about comic strips and the love of bookstores. This piece of fiction informs and tells a good story about one of those men with more dreams than sense. “The Comic Book Hinterlands” is the place where the oddness of comics is celebrated.