Friday, January 18, 2008

40 Years Ago Today From DC Comics -- Batman #200

Batman #200 (On Sale: January 18, 1968) features a nice cover by Neal Adams. Damn, he could even make Robin's silly costume look good.

"The Man Who Radiated Fear" is by Mike Friedrich, Chic Stone and Joe Giella. In a story that recaps the origins of both Batman and Robin, the Scarecrow perfects a fear-radiated pill, which when he swallows it makes Batman and Robin fear him. The paralyzing fear that overcomes Batman makes him unable to fight crime. He returns to the Batcave with Robin and receives a pep talk from Alfred reminding him how he became Batman.

Batman and Robin renew their war on crime. They captures Joker, Killer Moth, and Penguin. On each crook they discover clues which lead them to the Scarecrow. Despite the fear that the villain has induced in him, Batman is able to escape a death trap. He and Robin then defeat the Scarecrow, when the crook becomes scared of them. This classic story was reprinted in Batman in the Sixties TPB.

Edited by Julius Schwartz.

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