*DC: A nice curiosity this week as we present an unnumbered issue of Detective Double Double Comics.  In the Sixties, it was a common practise of the UK distributors Thorpe & Porter to return the covers of unsold copies for credit, then re-purpose the ‘destroyed’ coverless copies, four to an issue, under a new cover – usually an ineptly-recoloured stat of a US original. Thus the contents of any given issue are random, but this issue actually does include four issues of Detective Comics: #352, #357, #358 and, rather fortuitously, #359, containing the first appearance of Barbara Gordon as Batgirl. After the original Bat-Girl was swept away out of continuity with her aunt Batwoman following a change of direction for Batman in the 1960s, a new Batgirl was introduced, co-created by DC and the producers of the hit Batman TV show, as a boost to the third series of that iconic show. Barbara Gordon proved a hit as Batgirl both in comics and TV. Her comic debut came in Detective Comics #359 (1967) where she tangled with Killer Moth, just as she did in the pilot for her debut on TV. Barbara Gordon, amidst a history of adventure and misfortune, has gone on to become a mainstay of the DCU to this day. The full comic is included here (without covers, but with ads, of course) in this squarebound giant issue. The issue is in fairly nice nick, with an intact spine and great colour cover; there is a long colour-breaking crease across the bottom right corner and some minor cover staining, back cover creasing, but tight binding and great quality pages. A great find for both Double Double collectors and for those for whom a ‘proper’ copy of Detective #359 is out of reach.
PICTURED: DETECTIVE DOUBLE DOUBLE COMICS VG £80 SOLD