Episode 96: Super Double-Sized! -- 1963 End of the Year Review

In This Episode:

Mike and Ed give their take on what mattered in 1963, including:

* Rapid growth in the number of super powered individuals, resulting in team-ups, international expansion — and fraud!

* New Frontiers: If 1962 was the year of aliens, 1963 expanded what it meant to be alien with the discovery of three previously unknown civilizations here on Earth, plus alternate dimensions that are in some ways closer than Europe

* The Manufacturing of Superheroes: We now have a better idea how superheroes are “made”. The Sandman and Radioactive Man showed us the importance of atomic power. The Cobra showed that duplicating powers is possible. And the Russians managed to duplicate the comic-energy power generation that created the Fantastic Four

* This has led to a Technological Response to Super Powers. While 1962 saw villains like The Wizard and The Protector use technology to take on superheroes, 1963 took technology to a new level. Ironman - a normal human in a battle suit - has joined the ranks of the most powerful supers on the planet. Dr Blake’s android, while eventually being destroyed, was for a time more powerful than Thor. A half-dozen Wizard “copycats” showed that it just takes some engineering genius to enter the ranks of the super elite. Meanwhile containing supervillains has taken on a new urgency. We have not done a very good job of containing technological villains like The Vulture and Sandman, but so far super powered captives like The Vanisher and The Molecule Man, have not reemerged after whatever we did to contain their powers.

Also: Our hosts give their predictions on what the trends might be in 1964. You won’t want to miss this!

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.superserious616.com