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Rating: 
Summary: A great blast from the past!
Review: After a nice little introduction, this great DC archive book launches into the meat - thirteen Golden Age Plastic Man comics! With a good deal of action and humor (not to mention humorous action), Plas and his sidekick, Woozy Winks, take on the bad guys. My son and I loved this book, and thought it was a great blast from the past! We both highly recommend it!In case you are interested, this book includes stories (in this order) from Police Comics #31 (6/1944), #32 (7/44), #33 (8/44), Plastic Man #2 (8/44), Police Comics #34 (9/44), #35 (10/44), #36 (11/44), #37 (12/44), #38 (1/45), and #39 (2/45). The funny thing is just how little World War 2 seems to have intruded into these stories! But, in a way, that helps make the stories somewhat timeless. Anyway, buy this book!
Rating:
Summary: Absolutely Engaging
Review: Cole was originally told to create a character like Will Eisner's Spirit, and instead created something entirely wonderful. The originality and dark humor make this book stand out from all others. It appears innocent enough, and it is great fun, but there is an undercurrent of something wry in the late Mr. Cole's work, maybe even a little devilish. Read these originals from the original creator. It will be worth your while.
Rating:
Summary: Jack Cole at his humorous Plastic Man best!!
Review: Jack Cole was one of the greatest cartoonists in the history of comics and his creation PLASTIC MAN is excellent. The character has been around for over 40 years in books, comics and TV shows. DC presents masterpiece Archive editions that reprint all the PLAS stories. Each collection is plasterific!!
Rating:
Summary: Take a bite out of crime
Review: Jack Cole was one of the true geniuses of the comic book art form. Here we have some great examples of his masterwork, Plastic Man. Plastic Man and his sidekick Woozy Winks are two of the greatest characters of the Golden Age of comics. Jack Cole's odd outlook on life, and his sometimes dark sense of humor, make these among the best of the superhero comics of the era. Highly recommended to superhero fans, especially those who don't them too seriously.
Rating:
Summary: Plastic Man is the humorous hero from a simpler era.....
Review: Jack Cole's Plastic Man was one of the most original heroes ever created. A former criminal who fights crime with a body that can stretch into any form. More comics today should be like this simple character from the 40s. The stories in this Archive stand up remarkably well and are still fun.
Rating:
Summary: Plaz-tastic
Review: Out of the five archives on Plastic Man to date I like this one the best (but this is not to say the rest are bad 2-5 are mearly terrific while this one is Plaz-tastic). Jack Cole set out to just put some bread on the table but he ended up creating what I consider to be a dream on paper. In later volumes a fleet of ghost artists takes over the adventures of the stretchable sherlock with some pretty good results but this is Cole's finest hour.l
Rating: 
Summary: before there was The Tick...
Review: Plastic Man was an odd character for his time. At his conception, the genre of the super hero was still in its infancy, with very few of the super hero icons established. The "big three," Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman, were already here. Plastic Man broke strange new ground. He was perhaps the first (and most durable; he's still around in the pages of JLA) parody of the super hero. His powers themselves are a recipe for wackiness. He had and still has one of the strangest costumes in comics. He was, as far as I know, the first comics character to have the overused "fell into a vat of chemicals" origin that has also given us characters such as the Joker and Mr. Freeze. The strangest and most unique part of him in my eyes is his paradoxical beginnings and his resulting secret identity. Eel O'Brien was a ruthless criminal. He had the accident that turned him into Plastic Man. Upon discovering his powers, he immediately reevaluated his station in life and resovled to use his new powers to make ammends for his past wrongdoings. It was that simple. But he has the stranges secret identity in comicdom. In those days, he retained his Eel O'Brien identity and acted as a spy on the mob. So, he's still constantly on the run for police; conversely, Plastic Man is a badge carrying member of the police force. His exploits are surprising for one who knows him in current DC comics continuity. These days, although he has been handled very well, he is mostly used for comic relief (as was probably Jack Cole's intention). But during the Golden Age, he had a much darker side. He is, at times, actually quite violent, and transforms himself into bizarre torutre devices to torment his enemies. This book also sees the introduction of one of the most absurd sidekicks in comics: Woozy Winks, a man who nature will not allow to be harmed. His origin is funny, however. Upon recieving his super powers, he initially decides to use them for evil at the flip of the coin. Overall, this is a very fun book for those who know the Plastic Man of today and want to see more of him.
Rating:
Summary: The Most Refreshing character from Comics' Golden Age.
Review: Plastic Man was the first Super Hero who had his own distinct personality; he was the first to have been a former criminal, and he was the first one to know how loony and fun his world was. And now, his first adventures are back in this wonderful Archive edition. Jack Cole, Plastic Man's creator, broke ground that is only now being broken again by today's comic book artists. Cole excelled as a writer, inker, letterer and penciler, very unusual then and now. Plastic Man was obviously a labor of love for him, as evidenced by the wild plots, characters and the sublime ability to put all that into pictures. The most important thing about Plastic Man and his pal Woozy Winks was that they actually enjoyed their surrealistic adventures. Plastic Man AKA Eel O' Brian, had a great time tying himself into knots, boucing like a super ball, and using his arms as lariats. It's like Cole actually contemplated what an imaginative mind could do with such a gift. Cole made it fun for the reader by introducing some of the most original villains the comics' world has to offer. Again, Cole artwork is only matched by his stories. Both are edgy and out of this world. I'm afraid I can't do justice to these stories by describing them. Cole's talent stood out over 50 years ago and it stands out now. The Plastic Man character was not created from a cookie cutter. He was fresh, unique, and wildy inventive. It has remained that way. Although pricey, this edition is worth it. If you think that wahy today's artisits are producing is special, think again. Cole already did it. Highly recommended.
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Summary: Jack Cole's artwork honored.
Review: This is a magnificent addition to DC's Archive series reprinting the first 20 Plastic Man strories from Quality's Police Comics in all their glory, including full page cover reproductions from each issue. The replication is superb and colors appear to be rendered acurately from my recollection of the 1940's originals. Those familiar with Jack Cole's work will already be aware of his technique of rendering serious subjects in a whimsical manner. He had the unique ability of creating surreal worlds balanced precariously between realiasm and cartoonish absurdity. Furthermore, Jack Cole's Plastic Man has a noirish simplicity that distinguishes his character from the plethora of superheros created by other illustrators, past and present. My one caveat: This book would be deserving of a five star rating if not for the poorly rendered dust jacket illustration. Since this book is entirely devoted to Jack Cole and his creation, it would have made more sense to use one of the master illustrators own depictions of the character on the dustjacket. It is my hope that DC is monitoring these reviews and will correct this error in judgement on reissues of this and future volumes in the series.
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