Meanwhile, at the Hall of Justice: Green Lantern, Batman, the Flash, and Aquaman (clockwise, from bottom right). DC Comics writer Scott Beatty has collected action figures since the 1970s, but when he first pitched the idea for a visual history of DC's plastic avatars, his bosses said forget it — too expensive. Today, the air is thick with superheroes, and Chronicle Books gave Beatty's concept the green lantern. With achingly detailed close-ups, The DC Comics Action Figure Archive charts the articulated figures' transformation from children's toys to strangely compelling works of pop art. All the legends are on display, in endless variations: There are more than 100 photos of Caped Crusader figures alone, including Kenner's Arctic Batman, the vampiric Crimson Mist Batman, and Hasbro's dumpy, hatchet-faced Batman Masterpiece edition, with a simple, loose-fitting cloth uniform covering 25 movable joints. Vronk! But the archive also spotlights forgotten characters — from jetpack-propelled interplanetary commuter Adam Strange to Zatanna, a curvy Justice League of America magician outfitted with top hat and real fishnet stockings. We're reminded that, for all their sci-fi fantasy, comics are more about sentimental journeys back to childhood than visions of the future. Is there a male boomer out there who's unmoved at the sight of a 12-inch-high Sgt. Rock action figure (not a doll, thank you!) clad in fatigues and designed to share accessories with G.I. Joe? "Part of wanting to do the book," Beatty admits, "was wanting to legitimize my collection. I'd kept all my receipts."
Play Previous: at Power's Jukebox, JJ Abrams' Top-Secret Cloverfield, Y: The LasWhat's Wired This Month: Ct Man on Earth Next: On iTunes, a Careless Click May Buy You an Imposter
