Superman: The Action Comics Archives, Vol. 5 (DC Archive Editions)
As these 17 stories from 1944–45 issues of Action Comics demonstrate, five years after the creation of Superman, writers had given up on challenging him with the formidable likes of evil mastermind Luthor and mad scientist the Ultra-Humanite, resorting instead to baffling him with buffoons like joke-playing Prankster, magical imp Mr. Mxyztplk, and the Toyman, who commits his enormities with souped-up toys. Several stories, more sitcom than superheroics, are predicated on romantic mix-ups. They're such lighthearted misadventures that you'd never know a war was on. The artwork, recognizably based on the powerfully rudimentary style of original Superman artist Joe Shuster (who's guilty of a couple of lackluster entries here), shows the strain of cranking out dozens of stories yearly for the various comic books featuring the phenomenally popular character. Still, the appealing naïveté of these vintage stories is undeniable and almost makes up for their lack of modern sophistication. Flagg, Gordon