*DC: The groundbreaking run of Green Lantern, in which he and Green Arrow set out to confront the failing American Dream, resonates with audiences even today, as, sadly, corruption, pollution, overpopulation and the other issues raised seem even more topical now. The Comics Code Authority had long prohibited even the mention of drug use, but that being one of the matters the editors wanted to address, creators Denny O’Neil and Neal Adams took advantage of a then-recent liberalisation of the Code to have a shocking story in which Speedy, Green Arrow’s former sidekick, was revealed to be a heroin user. The controversial cover was banned in many parts of the USA, and the story, though naïve, was a sincere attempt to address the issue in comics for only the second time since the 1950s.
GREEN LANTERN #85 VF £100