Solar, Man Of The Atom

Back in the 1960s comic book publishers took notice of Marvel Comics sudden rise in sales.  Add to that the Batman TV show’s tremendous popularity and it appeared there was money to be made.

Gold Key Comics was known for its many licensed tie-in comics featuring TV shows, movies and various animated characters such as Disney’s Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck.

At one point Gold Key sold more comic books than any other publishers.

In a bold step Gold Key released a series of original superhero titles, Doctor Solar Man Of The Atom being one of them.

Personally I liked the book and along with Magnum Robot Fighter it was one of my favorite comic book series.

When Gold Key stopped publishing it seemed that its superhero line died with it.

In the early 1990s Jim Shooter (having been let go by Marvel Comics) decided to revive the Gold Key characters.  He purchased the rights and began publishing new versions of the characters under the Valiant Comics banner.

Solar Man Of The Atom was written by Shooter and draw by Barry Windsor Smith.

The story redefines and revamps the origin of Solar using a clever time travel/alternate reality twist.

What makes Valiant's Solar such an unusual and collectible series is that in the first ten issues special poster inserts were included.  When placed side by side the sections make up a giant poster depicting the Alpha and Omega of Solar’s origin.

It’s quit a feat of publishing magic and really showcases the incredible drawing talent of Barry Windsor Smith.

Early Valiant issues are now demanding big bucks and because the early issues had limited print runs demand far outpaces supply.

If you do have the good fortune to pick up any pre-Unity Valiant titles, do so.  They are guaranteed to increase in value and collectibility.

Near mint raw copies of issue #1 go for around $15 with slabbed issues fetching $80.