What do you think?
Rate this book
Doc Savage Comics #Man of Bronze
Doc Savage: The Man of Bronze
Classic pulp fiction hero Doc Savage stars in several comic adaptations of the famous 30's pulp novels.
The classic comics adaptations of Lester Dent's original Doc Savage stories from the 1930's ,"Man of Bronze", "Death in Silver", "The Monsters" "Brand of the Werewolf" are collected here for the first time.
The classic comics adaptations of Lester Dent's original Doc Savage stories from the 1930's ,"Man of Bronze", "Death in Silver", "The Monsters" "Brand of the Werewolf" are collected here for the first time.
176 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2010
About the author
Steve Englehart
1,399 books99 followersSee also John Harkness.
Steve Englehart went to Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut. After a stint in the Army, he moved to New York and began to write for Marvel Comics. That led to long runs on Captain America, The Hulk, The Avengers, Dr. Strange, and a dozen other titles. Midway through that period he moved to California (where he remains), and met and married his wife Terry.
He was finally hired away from Marvel by DC Comics, to be their lead writer and revamp their core characters (Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Flash, and Green Lantern). He did, but he also wrote a solo Batman series (immediately dubbed the "definitive" version) that later became Warner Brothers' first Batman film (the good one).
After that he left comics for a time, traveled in Europe for a year, wrote a novel (The Point Man™), and came back to design video games for Atari (E.T., Garfield). But he still liked comics, so he created Coyote™, which within its first year was rated one of America's ten best series. Other projects he owned (Scorpio Rose™, The Djinn™) were mixed with company series (Green Lantern [with Joe Staton], Silver Surfer, Fantastic Four). Meanwhile, he continued his game design for Activision, Electronic Arts, Sega, and Brøderbund.
And once he and Terry had their two sons, Alex and Eric, he naturally told them stories. Rustle's Christmas Adventure was first devised for them. He went on to add a run of mid-grade books to his bibliography, including the DNAgers™ adventure series, and Countdown to Flight, a biography of the Wright brothers selected by NASA as the basis for their school curriculum on the invention of the airplane.
In 1992 Steve was asked to co-create a comics pantheon called the Ultraverse. One of his contributions, The Night Man, became not only a successful comics series, but also a television show. That led to more Hollywood work, including animated series such as Street Fighter, GI Joe, and Team Atlantis for Disney.
Steve Englehart went to Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut. After a stint in the Army, he moved to New York and began to write for Marvel Comics. That led to long runs on Captain America, The Hulk, The Avengers, Dr. Strange, and a dozen other titles. Midway through that period he moved to California (where he remains), and met and married his wife Terry.
He was finally hired away from Marvel by DC Comics, to be their lead writer and revamp their core characters (Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Flash, and Green Lantern). He did, but he also wrote a solo Batman series (immediately dubbed the "definitive" version) that later became Warner Brothers' first Batman film (the good one).
After that he left comics for a time, traveled in Europe for a year, wrote a novel (The Point Man™), and came back to design video games for Atari (E.T., Garfield). But he still liked comics, so he created Coyote™, which within its first year was rated one of America's ten best series. Other projects he owned (Scorpio Rose™, The Djinn™) were mixed with company series (Green Lantern [with Joe Staton], Silver Surfer, Fantastic Four). Meanwhile, he continued his game design for Activision, Electronic Arts, Sega, and Brøderbund.
And once he and Terry had their two sons, Alex and Eric, he naturally told them stories. Rustle's Christmas Adventure was first devised for them. He went on to add a run of mid-grade books to his bibliography, including the DNAgers™ adventure series, and Countdown to Flight, a biography of the Wright brothers selected by NASA as the basis for their school curriculum on the invention of the airplane.
In 1992 Steve was asked to co-create a comics pantheon called the Ultraverse. One of his contributions, The Night Man, became not only a successful comics series, but also a television show. That led to more Hollywood work, including animated series such as Street Fighter, GI Joe, and Team Atlantis for Disney.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
September 22, 2022
Long Beach Comic-Con Sep '22 purchase.
This is a dense book! Dense as in Englehart and Company basically shoved the first five or six novels into these issues. Despite that, they created a very good, illustrated version of those novels. Doc's crew is drawn exceptionally well, although Monk should probably be a bit hairier. Ha! Seriously though, Englehart's work should be a guide for today's writers on adapting novels to the four-color world of comics.
Ross Andru was the perfect artist for a character like Doc and did superb work here. Andru is mostly known as a co-creator of the Punisher, but should also be recognized for his amazing work on dozens of other Marvel and DC books to include Spider-Man, Wonder Woman, and probably every DC War comic back in the 70s and 80s.
Originally published by Marvel, DC/Warner now has the license. Unfortunately, that means we'll probably never see the Thing/Doc Savage team-up that happened in an early issue of Marvel Two-In-One.
FIND IT! BUY IT! READ IT!
This is a dense book! Dense as in Englehart and Company basically shoved the first five or six novels into these issues. Despite that, they created a very good, illustrated version of those novels. Doc's crew is drawn exceptionally well, although Monk should probably be a bit hairier. Ha! Seriously though, Englehart's work should be a guide for today's writers on adapting novels to the four-color world of comics.
Ross Andru was the perfect artist for a character like Doc and did superb work here. Andru is mostly known as a co-creator of the Punisher, but should also be recognized for his amazing work on dozens of other Marvel and DC books to include Spider-Man, Wonder Woman, and probably every DC War comic back in the 70s and 80s.
Originally published by Marvel, DC/Warner now has the license. Unfortunately, that means we'll probably never see the Thing/Doc Savage team-up that happened in an early issue of Marvel Two-In-One.
FIND IT! BUY IT! READ IT!
January 28, 2023
Ah, the early 1970s, when you could buy a comic book for 20 cents, and it would take you fifteen or twenty minutes to read...fifty years later, they're $5-6, and they take about four minutes to read.
I enjoyed sliding back into these. Yes, they had to play fast and loose with the adaptations, and each was necessarily truncated. And don't even get me started on Doc's attire basically being white pants and a far-too-small vest that essentially left him naked from the waist up. 70s comics, am I right?
But for all that, the love of the characters shines through here, and these are a lot of fun to read, fifty years later.
I enjoyed sliding back into these. Yes, they had to play fast and loose with the adaptations, and each was necessarily truncated. And don't even get me started on Doc's attire basically being white pants and a far-too-small vest that essentially left him naked from the waist up. 70s comics, am I right?
But for all that, the love of the characters shines through here, and these are a lot of fun to read, fifty years later.
January 20, 2017
I first reads these back in about 1975. At the time I loved them. I've read them several times since and they're fun, but not much more than that. If you are a die-hard Doc Savage fan, you'll probably enjoy it on some level. But these do represent a different era in comics. On some pages there's almost more words than pictures, but then trying to adapt four 120-page books into 8 issues has got to be a real challenge. I've got to give the writers credit in that regard. But for an even better run of Doc Savage comics pick up Showcase Presents: Doc Savage, which are all new adventures. Still for the era these produced and the challenge of adapting novels into such a short span of pages, this is an enjoyable little book.
August 11, 2023
This is an interesting volume. In the early seventies Marvel Comics had acquired the license to publish comics featuring Doc Savage. However, by the time this volume was published DC Comics had the license for Doc Savage. Apparently, as a result they were able to publish this book using the material Marvel had originally published. Not sure if Marvel was happy about this state of affairs but I suspect not. The stories in this book are adaptations of the original pulp novels, with each novel being adapted over two issues. Unfortunately the comic only lasted eight issues so only four stories were adapted. These were The Man of Bronze, Death in Silver, The Monsters and Brand of the Werewolf. The first of course was the story that introduced Doc Savage to the world, and thus was a logical choice to adapt. The final story was the one that introduced Doc's cousin Patricia (Pat) Savage to the series. The other two were good stories and well worth adapting.
Mr. Englehart has done an admiral job with the writing. Of course it would have been impossible to fully adapt a pulp magazine novel into two issues of a comic but he has managed to keep the essence of the stories, even if he has to leave out some of the details. I also applaud his keeping these stories in their original time period. I don't object to stories that set Doc in the modern world, but these have been original stories and thus weren't rooted in the earlier milieu. One aspect of the art I found interesting is that the artist based Doc on the covers that James Bama was doing for the Bantam paperback reissues, rather than as Doc appeared in the pulps. As most people would be more familiar with the paperbacks this makes sense. All in all, this is a good collection of adventure stories. If you enjoy that type of story or are a Doc Savage fan this is a good volume to add to you library. Happy reading.
Mr. Englehart has done an admiral job with the writing. Of course it would have been impossible to fully adapt a pulp magazine novel into two issues of a comic but he has managed to keep the essence of the stories, even if he has to leave out some of the details. I also applaud his keeping these stories in their original time period. I don't object to stories that set Doc in the modern world, but these have been original stories and thus weren't rooted in the earlier milieu. One aspect of the art I found interesting is that the artist based Doc on the covers that James Bama was doing for the Bantam paperback reissues, rather than as Doc appeared in the pulps. As most people would be more familiar with the paperbacks this makes sense. All in all, this is a good collection of adventure stories. If you enjoy that type of story or are a Doc Savage fan this is a good volume to add to you library. Happy reading.
July 2, 2024
I am a Marvel zombie in the traditional sense of the word, meaning that if Marvel put it out in the '60-80s, then it must be good. Make Mine Marvel and all that jazz. When DC solicited this trade paperback which reprints the Marvel run and featured work by beloved Bronze Age creators such as Writers Steve Englehart, Tony Isabella and Roy Thomas and Artist Ross Andru, I was in, never mind the fact that I had no previous inclination to pick up a Doc Savage book.
For the uninitiated, Doc Savage is a pulp hero from the 1930s, a pre-cursor to the modern day superhero. He is called the Man of Bronze, and that is where my confusion comes in. Is he actually MADE of bronze? He is drawn and colored like he is. He wears a vest with no shirt in the snow and cold. He seems to take a lot of injury and appears to have augmented, or above normal human level, strength. Whatever the case, this was a decent read, especially issues 6-8. They feature a werewolf that looks just like my beloved Werewolf By Night, right down to the ripped green jeans. It's not really him (nearly 40 year old spoiler!!), but he's drawn that way.
For the uninitiated, Doc Savage is a pulp hero from the 1930s, a pre-cursor to the modern day superhero. He is called the Man of Bronze, and that is where my confusion comes in. Is he actually MADE of bronze? He is drawn and colored like he is. He wears a vest with no shirt in the snow and cold. He seems to take a lot of injury and appears to have augmented, or above normal human level, strength. Whatever the case, this was a decent read, especially issues 6-8. They feature a werewolf that looks just like my beloved Werewolf By Night, right down to the ripped green jeans. It's not really him (nearly 40 year old spoiler!!), but he's drawn that way.
October 20, 2025
Una adaptación reverente a las primeras aventuras del Hombre de Bronce, arquetipo del superhéroe que posteriormente triunfó en los comic-books. Destaca el cariño mostrado por el equipo creativo a las historias pulp que inspiraron esta serie, pero la naturaleza monolítica e infalible del personaje reduce irremediablemente su público a estudiosos y nostálgicos; sobre todo al ser un traspaso.
August 20, 2017
This book collects all Eight issues of the 1970s Doc Savage Comic which adapted Doc Savage novels into two issue comic stories, "The Man of Bronze," "Death in Silver," "The Monsters," and "Brand of the Werewolf."
Probably the only one of these that's superb as a story is, "The Man of Bronze" which tells the origin of Doc Savage's amazing wealth and really sets the stage for the series. The other stories in here are good, though not spectacular. However, what stands out is the art, particularly those issues done by Ross Andru of Wonder Woman fame. The images really stand out and probably more than any other comic adaptation, you really have a sense of the epicness of Doc's Adventures.
So overall, fair to good adaptations, highlighted by breathtaking and memorable art.
Probably the only one of these that's superb as a story is, "The Man of Bronze" which tells the origin of Doc Savage's amazing wealth and really sets the stage for the series. The other stories in here are good, though not spectacular. However, what stands out is the art, particularly those issues done by Ross Andru of Wonder Woman fame. The images really stand out and probably more than any other comic adaptation, you really have a sense of the epicness of Doc's Adventures.
So overall, fair to good adaptations, highlighted by breathtaking and memorable art.
April 10, 2020
The most pulp of pulp heroes. A good read. A collection of tales.
December 24, 2012
Due to the strangeness of copyright laws, this is a Marvel Comics' series that has been reprinted by DC Comics, who currently holds the rights to Doc Savage. This book features all eight issues of Doc's short-lived full-color comic (DC's Showcase Presents reprint series has a volume with the eight issues of the black-and-white magazine Marvel produced around the same time).
The stories are straight up adaptations of the original Doc Savage pulp adventures, each told over two issues. The first one, The Man of Bronze was more staged after the look of the George Pal-produced Doc Savage movie, which was a considerable dud due to its campiness. The other stories adapted are Death in Silver, The Monsters, and Brand of the Werewolf. Industry stalwart Ross Andru does a lot of the interior art, which there are some fantastic covers by Jim Steranko, John Buscema and Gil Kane.
This would be a great book for the Doc Savage fan and completist, and any fan of pulp adventures.
The stories are straight up adaptations of the original Doc Savage pulp adventures, each told over two issues. The first one, The Man of Bronze was more staged after the look of the George Pal-produced Doc Savage movie, which was a considerable dud due to its campiness. The other stories adapted are Death in Silver, The Monsters, and Brand of the Werewolf. Industry stalwart Ross Andru does a lot of the interior art, which there are some fantastic covers by Jim Steranko, John Buscema and Gil Kane.
This would be a great book for the Doc Savage fan and completist, and any fan of pulp adventures.
March 11, 2015
These stories are about as mediocre as I remembered. The eight comics reprinted here are from Marvel's early 70s color Doc Savage series. I vaguely remember reading them when they first came out and not being impressed. I'm still not impressed.
The best part of the series is the cover of issue two, drawn by Jim Steranko. And even that isn't near as nice as the covers he did for the Shadow paperbacks.
I hope I enjoy the stories from Doc Savage Archives Volume 1: The Curtis Magazine Era Hc more.
The best part of the series is the cover of issue two, drawn by Jim Steranko. And even that isn't near as nice as the covers he did for the Shadow paperbacks.
I hope I enjoy the stories from Doc Savage Archives Volume 1: The Curtis Magazine Era Hc more.
September 21, 2011
Steve Englehart's adaptations were the best of the series; 4 novels reduced to 2 issues (about 40 pages) of comics was a rough job, and Steve struck a fine balance between maintaining a coherent plot and pacing it well. Oddly, Gardner Fox had the most difficulty in pacing the stories with penciller Ross Andru.
Overall, an entertaining run. Too bad they didn't try new stories, but that may not have been part of Marvel's original licensing contract.
Overall, an entertaining run. Too bad they didn't try new stories, but that may not have been part of Marvel's original licensing contract.
November 16, 2010
Kept to Dents story pretty faithfully
Want to Read
December 3, 2012Fuck yeah Doc Savage.
October 1, 2015
Recopilación moderna de historias de la edad dorada del Hombre de Bronce.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews