My Collections, Part 5: Starman (Prince Gavyn)

This Starman was the last one introduced before I started reading comics. Once again, we've got another character calling themselves Starman, and there's absolutely no connection to Ted Knight. I was vaguely aware of him as a character before Robinson's series, but only in an off-handed way. He pretty much kept to himself, appearing for about a year as a feature in Adventure Comics, then he was "killed" during the Crisis on Infinite Earths.

Robinson did a WONDERFUL job of working Prince Gavyn's story into the overall Starman mythos, integrating the death of Gavyn into the birth of the Will Payton Starman...but we'll get to all that next time.

Gavyn was the 2nd Starman to be truly from the stars, but as opposed to Mikaal, there was actually an attempt to flesh him out. That said, his tenure was short-lived. As I stated earlier, he had year-long run in Adventure Comics, then he met his end in Crisis on Infinite Earths. A couple years later, we got a NEW Starman, and then a decade or so after that, Gavyn returned. I won't spoil how that happened; it's a great read.

Nobody did much with Gavyn after Robinson ended his series. It wasn't until DC was ramping up their Infinite Crisis mega-crossover that Gavyn was brought back into play. Rann and Thanagar were at war, and Gavyn's Throneworld was drawn into the fray. This played out through the Rann/Thanagar Holy War, then Jim Starlin, the writer of Holy War, kept the majority of this rag-tag group of heroes around for a Strange Adventures mini-series, where Gavyn was transformed into the new hero Fusion. I don't know what happened after that. Sorry.

Gavyn has yet to appear in DC's post-Flashpoint continuity, but Rebirth is doing a good job of bringing in heroes that were forgotten in New 52. As I keep saying, I'm hoping for SOME Starman to make his return.

Like with Mikaal, I only have two Gavyn sketch cards by Rob Retiano (one in the red suit and one in the blue), and a sketch from Derek Fridolfs.

I've also got some great pictures of my youngest kiddo as the red-suited Gavyn. I'll post pics when I talk about Jack, but just as a heads up, the whole fam damily dressed up as Starman characters to go to the 2014 Wizard World Nashville. It was awesome.

Have List

Adam Strange Special #1
Adventure Comics Vol. 1 (1938 series) #467, 468, 469, 470, 471, 472, 473, 474, 475, 476, 477
Crisis on Infinite Earths #10, Deluxe Edition
DC Comics Presents #36
Hawkman Vol. 4 (2002 series) #49
History of the DC Universe #2, TPB, HC
Infinite Crisis #1 (Lee Cover), 1 (Perez Cover), 1 (Sketch Cover), 4 (Lee Cover), 4 (Perez Cover), 4 (Sketch Cover), 6 (Lee Cover), 6 (Perez Cover), 6 (Sketch Cover), TPB
Rann/Thanagar Holy War #1, 1 (Variant), 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
Rann/Thanagar War #1, 1 (2nd Print), 2, 3, 4
Starman Vol. 2 (1994 series) #58, 59, 60, 71, 73, 76, Annual 1, Omnibus Vol. 2, 5, 6, Omnibus TPB Vol. 2, TPB Vol. 4, 8, 10
Starman Secret Files #1
Strange Adventures Vol. 3 (2009 series) #1, 1 (Variant), 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
Superman/Batman #32, 33
Who's Who: The Definitive Directory of the DC Universe #22

Want List

Adventure Comics Vol. 1 (1938 series) #478
Crisis on Infinite Earths Absolute, HC, TPB
Infinite Crisis #1 (Lee Cover no UPC), HC
Justice League Unlimited #10
Rann/Thanagar Holy War TPB Vol. 1, 2
Rann/Thanagar War TPB
Starman Vol. 2 (1994 series) TPB Vol. 9
Strange Adventures Vol. 3 (2009 series) TPB

Sigh, there's always something I forget. Here are pics of the Prince Gavyn comics in my collection.

My Collections, Part 4: Starman (Mikaal Tomas) edited

For the one or two people who are reading about my collections, I apologize for the tardiness in updates. I've been having some financial urgencies, I've since decided that I'm going to start opening up the majority of my Starman and Joe Hill collections for purchase, but all of my Jack Knight and Locke & Key stuff are staying with me.

That said, I'm going to continue with my blogs as if I've still got everything. I've actually sold very little, and most were issues I already blogged about in Ted Knight's entry. So I'm 99% sure that, at least for Mikaal, I've still got everything I say I've got.

Mikaal is strange and wonderful character, and his history is somewhat marvelous. He was first introduced in 1st Issue Special #12 in 1976. From what I understand, DC's copyright on the name Starman was about to run out, so they needed to get a character introduced...or something like that. I don't know why they just wouldn't do some more Ted Knight and JSA stories, but that's above my pay grade. So he was introduced...then he was abandoned and not seen again until James Robinson started his own Starman series. I would gladly argue with anyone about Mikaal's one-page appearance at the very end of issue #3 that gave us the first clue as to how deep Robinson's series would delve into the storied history of the name Starman, not just the Knight lineage.

Robinson took that one issue and crafted a wonderful history for this blue-skinned character. He gave him a full life with loves and enemies and struggles...lots of struggles. He also did something pretty awesome and a bit ahead of its time while staying under the radar. Robinson effortlessly and naturally gave us a wonderful gay superhero without being a stereotype. He and his partner Tony just WERE. There was no fuss, no spectacle, no "READ THIS COMIC BOOK BECAUSE SOMEBODY IS GAY." They were just characters on a natural progression, which is really how things should be.

After Robinson's Starman series ended, Mikaal was able to live a peaceful life for a bit...until Robinson took over writing duties on the Justice League and had Mikaal join up. Dude's had a rough go of things, and Robinson really didn't let up. Poor guy.

Mikaal, like the other Starmen before and after him, has not been reintroduced into the post-Flashpoint New 52 Universe. There is a slightly better chance of him or the rest of the Starmen showing up in the post-Rebirth multiverse now that some pre-Flashpoint continuities have been folded into some post-Flashpoint continuities.

Edited to ad: I forgot to mention the non-comic stuff I have featuring Mikaal.

Here are my current haves and needs for Mikaal. I don't know if any action figures of Mik were ever made. I don't have any, and I don't really recall any popping up during my brief eBay searches for action figures.

I do have some original art. Of course Mik is represented in my sketch card set by Rob Retiano. I've even got two versions of him, from his intro and from his later stint in the Justice League. I've also got a sketch of him from Derek Fridolfs. But that's it.

I also had to do another edit to include a link to the Imgur album. I kind of dropped the ball on this one. Going through the album, I realized that until recently I had the entirety of the Return of Bruce Wayne mini (regular covers), but I ended up selling that. I made a profit, and I don't think it'll be difficult at all to replace, and I bet I can get it for less than I paid. So, win-win?

Have List

1st Issue Special #1
Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne #3 (variant), 6 (variant), TPB
Brightest Day #15, 15 (variant), 16, 16 (variant), TPB v2
Justice League of America Vol. 2 (2006 series) #42, 43, 43 (variant), 44, 44 (variant), 45, 46, 46 (variant), 47, 47 (variant), 48, 48 (variant), 49, 49 (variant), 53, 53 (variant), 54, 54 (variant), 55, 55 (variant), 56, 56 (variant), 57, 57 (variant), 58, 58 (variant), 59, 59 (variant), 60, 60 (variant)
Justice League: Cry for Justice #1, 1 (variant), 1 (sideways), 2, 2 (2nd Print), 4, 5, 6, 7
Justice League: The Rise and Fall Special #1
Justice League: The Rise of Arsenal #2
Justice Leagues: Justice League of Aliens
Justice Society of America Vol. 3 (2007 series) #41, 41 (variant), 42, 42 (variant), 43
Starman Vol. 2 (1994 series) #3 (Signed by Tony Harris), 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 13, 15, 16, 17, 25, 27, 28, 29, 33, 35, 45, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 63, 64, 65, 67, 69, 70, 71, 73, 76, 80, TPB Vol. 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 10
Starman Omnibus Vol. 1, 2, 3 (Signed by Drew Geraci), 4 (Signed by Drew Geraci, John Lucas), 5, 6, TPB 1, 2
Starman 80-Page Giant #1 (Signed by John Lucas, Drew Geraci)
Starman Secret Files #1
Starman/Congorilla #1
Supergirl Vol. 5 (2005 series) #65
Superman: War of the Supermen #4, 4 (variant)
Superman: War of the Supermen Double Feature #2
Superman/Batman Annual #5
Titans Vol. 2 (2008 series) #36, 38, Annual #1

Want List
Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne #3, 5, 5 (variant), 6, HC
Brightest Day HC v2, Omnibus
DC Universe: Origins TPB
Justice League of America Vol. 2 (2006 series) #42 (variant), 45 (variant)
Justice League: Cry for Justice TPB, HC
Justice League: The Rise and Fall Special #1 (variant)
Starman Vol. 2 (1994) TPB Vol. 5, 7, 9
Subway Presents: Justice League #3
Superman: War of the Supermen TPB, HC

My Collections, Part 2.2: Starman (Ted Knight) - The Stuff

It wasn't until I started REALLY collecting Starman comics that I decided I was going to get ALL things Starman related. This includes toys, trading cards, prints, posters, miscellaneous collectibles, and original art.

One of the good things about collecting a character like Starman is that there isn't a ton of stuff out there to collect. Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Spider-Man, Iron Man, etc....fuggedaboutit. With Starman, there's just enough stuff out there to make the hunt fun, but not enough to overwhelm me. And there aren't a lot of high-dollar items out there. Statues and original art will always be expensive, but the character just isn't sought after enough to make his action figures or trading cards all that sought after.

First up is my original art. This part of my collection started about 10 years ago. I was a member of an online graphic novel trading group called Sequential Swap. I was contacted by member Derek Fridolfs to see if I would be interested in trading for one of my books. He said he was an artist and would trade one of my books for a sketch of a character of my choosing. He showed me some samples of his art, which was a little cartoony but still good, so I jumped on the chance. I ended up getting six different Starman sketches from him, ultimately wanting him to do each character for me, but I never got around to having him finish the series. I'm pretty sure the first sketch (Jack Knight) was the only one I traded for, and I probably paid for all of the other, no more than $30 for each character.

The Fred Hembeck sketch is on a blank card the size of a trading card. I ran across this piece on eBay, where he was apparently selling a bunch of cards like this but with different characters. I picked it up for $10, which I thought was a bargain.

A couple years ago I looked at that uncompleted Derek Fridolfs project of Starman sketches and thought I need to try again (by this time Derek was really making a name for himself, and I assumed his sketch prices were going up), but one a somewhat smaller scale. I came across artist Rob Retiano through a Facebook group where we were both members. He posted some of his art and mentioned he was open for commissions, so I brought him my idea for the cards. One card for each person to ever take the mantle of Starman, as well as his arch nemesis (all three Mists) and The Shade. There were also two versions of Ted (in costume and when he was older) as well as two versions of Prince Gavyn, Mikaal, Will, and David (Blacked Night David was included). He drew and colored a total of 20 cards for me, and I couldn't have been happier with what I received.

The two Brett Jones pieces were done as a trade through a Facebook group, but I do not remember what I traded for the piece. He included the finished piece (with an interesting new color scheme) as well as a preliminary drawing he did to get warmed up for the final piece. He also included a signed copy of the first issue of his comic Radiation Day!

The splatter print was kind of a lark. I liked the idea of the pictures, but I ended up having a bit of buyers remorse. I wasn't paying for original art or a print of an original piece by the artist. I was basically paying for a piece from another artist that was recolored. When I asked the artist about his process, this is what he told me: "I paint these digitally in Photoshop with various brushes." When I brought up that the pictures greatly resemble works by other artists, he said, "I typically look at a reference photo so it is possible they resemble other work ... I'm not familiar with the artists though." I realized that this kind of work isn't my thing, but if it's yours, check the guy out. His Etsy store has been offline since April, but it says it'll be back.

I don't have anything illuminating to say about the trading cards or the action figures. They are what they are. Same with the cup, but I thought it was a neat find. 7-11 having superhero cups isn't all that surprising or exciting, but putting the Golden Age Starman on a cup? That seems pretty out there.

Here are the pics for the collection. Enjoy!