ORIGINAL PUBLICATION DATE: FRIDAY JULY 30, 2010

Ask Joe

Dear Joe:
I have a copy of Adventure Comics No. 210, March 1955 Superboy. I Googled Superboy and although there were many issues listed, this particular one was not. It is also about Krypto (Superboy’s dog) and his super powers. Also in the magazine were stories about Aquaman and Green Arrow. Any information would be appreciated.
Thank you,
G. B.
Dear G. B.:
Let me start by saying that comic books are a little bit outside my comfort zone. There are many, many collectors who are passionate about this form of entertainment/ cultural phenomena and whose knowledge in this area is encyclopedic.
Comic books create a great deal of pleasant memories among their enthusiasts and I know several people who still mourn their collections after their mothers or wives disposed of these cherished possessions. So, with this in mind I venture into this very emotional area with some trepidation and hope that I can get the facts right.
Interestingly, “Adventure Comics,” which were originally published by DC Comics between November, 1938 and 1983 have been revived in 2010. The main characters for this series of comics were the Legion of Super-Heroes, Green Arrow, Aquaman, Super girl (or Kara Zor-El), and of course Superboy (Kal-El).
This may sound very straightforward, but over the years there have been several related characters named Superboy. Originally, Superboy, who was created by writer Jerry Siegel with the art supplied a bit later by Joe Shuster, was the youthful incarnation of the character known as Superman - or by his Kryptonian name Kal-El.
This Superboy used the secret identity “Clark Kent,” lived in “Smallville” with his foster parents, the Kents, and had a love interest name “Lana Lang.” Over time, there has been some “adjusting” of the Superboy’s backstory and story line, and in 1993, DC Comics introduced an updated Superboy, who (according to my understanding, which may be flawed) was a teenage clone of both Superman and his archenemy, “Lex Luthor.”
This Superboy was known by the Kryptonian name “Kon-El” and his alter ego was Clark Kent’s cousin “Conner Kent.” All of this is a bit confusing to an old codger like me, but I will press on - briefly.
It is reported that Jerry Siegel proposed the idea of Superboy to Detective Comics in 1938 only to have his idea summarily turned down. He tried again around 1940 and once again was rejected.
Then came the success of “Robin Boy Wonder” and Detective Comics decided to jump on the youthful superhero bandwagon and give Superboy a try. His first appearance was in More Fun Comics #101, which appeared in late 1944 with a 1945 cover date.
In April 1946, Superboy moved to Adventure Comics in their issue #103 as the lead story in the grouping of characters that appeared in the magazine. New Superboy stories appeared in Adventure Comics until 1963 when they were supplanted by the Legion of Super-Heros.
The comic book in today’s question is #210 and dated for March 1955, and if it details how Superboy was reunited with is dog Krypto, it should have some interest for collectors. However, comic book collectors want their magazines to be in really good condition (some do not even want them to be read), and the condition of this example is - in a word - deplorable.
There is no front cover, the top of the pages are dog-earred in a very unsightly manner and there are two large tears and missing pieces on the front page. At best, collectors would designate this a “reading copy” but the condition is too poor to make it very collectible.
In pristine condition #210 is not all that rare or valuable, and in its highly distressed condition, the example belonging to G. B. is probably worth less than $3.
Have an antique or collectible you would like to know more about? E-mail your questions and high resolution images to: dmsater@engleonline.com.