I used to watch my younger brother playing Rock’em Sock’em Robots with his buddies. I was a little too old when they became a fad in 1964...I was way too mature. I’d sniff with derision at the youngsters’ juvenile antics in trying to knock each others’ robot heads off, then go in my room and read comic books.

The idea for fighting robots wasn’t new, and had been used in science fiction before. It was used as recently as Real Steel, a movie from 2011.

So, we have two roughhousing robot stories today: “Stuart Taylor in Tales of the Supernatural” is from Jumbo Comics #101 (1947), and the Robotman story, “The Battling Robots” is from Star Spangled Comics #81 (1948). Robotman is drawn by Jimmy Thompson, and Stuart Taylor is credited by the Grand Comics Database as being drawn by Jack Kamen.

Number 977


Robotman and the bad robot


Jerry Siegel and artist Ed Dobrotka are credited with this Robotman story, which appeared in DC's Star Spangled Comics #17, in 1943.

There's something familiar about the criminal robot: he looks like he was inspired by the Golem from the 1920 German movie.

The bad robot's size changes throughout the story. In one panel he's shown riding in the back seat of a car with two thugs, and in another panel he's shown nearly as big as a car, holding a much smaller Robotman.

Come back Sunday for another story from this issue of Star Spangled Comics: the Newsboy Legion by Simon and Kirby.

Number 317

Robotbody Meets a Body!*

This Robotman story is from Detective Comics #152, October 1949. It's drawn by Jimmy Thompson, who I understand was an old timer, an artist who went back to pre-comic book days, working for newspapers. His drawing style is excellent and well-suited for DC Comics of the 1940s, so he adapted well to then-current art styles. I love the panels where Robotman wears different bodies: a midget body, a glass body, a helicopter body…

The story shows me again what I've said before: backup features in DC Comics could be as good as the lead features. DC's B-list characters were often better than other companies' A-list. I wish I had more of these to show you, but this is my sole comic with Robotman.

*The Grand Comics Database calls this story "Robotboy Meets A Body", a misreading of the title.

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The Hairy Green Eyeball posts a rare 1990s fanzine, It's Melvin, devoted to the EC days of the late Will Elder. It includes an index of Elder reprints up to the date of publication.