DC Comics · Detective Comics #166 · December 1950 · 10¢ · 52 pages
Grade: FN+ 6.5
Cover artist and interior credits unconfirmed for this issue.
“The Man with a Million Faces!” — Batman and Robin go up against a master of disguise operating out of a circus environment. The circus setting was a reliable Golden Age backdrop for identity-swap plotting, and this one leans into the gimmick: a criminal whose ability to alter his appearance puts the Dynamic Duo on the back foot before they can close the case. It's the kind of puzzle-box mystery structure that defined the Batman strip through this period — less bruiser, more detective.
The backup features Pow-Wow Smith, Indian Lawman — DC's Western strip following a Native American deputy navigating frontier justice. The feature ran steadily through Detective Comics in the late Golden Age, offering a different register than the Gotham material. At 52 pages, this issue carries the full anthology weight DC was still packing into its books at the decade's turn.
Detective Comics #166 lands at the tail end of the Golden Age Batman run — the title was already past its 150th issue and the character had been a fixture for over a decade. Cover carries a Red Feather Services advertisement stamp, a period charity program detail that shows up on newsstand copies and is worth noting for condition-conscious buyers.
Condition FN+ 6.5 — .
We use what the scientists are calling artificial intelligence to research and write our descriptions — it gives us more time to add books to our website and provide you with a wider array of inventory. We think Klaatu would approve. Details are verified but the robot does slip up. We're not infallible. Every book is graded by a human collector who has actually held it. If anything ever looks off, reach on out at robopictocomics@gmail.com.
DC Comics · Detective Comics #166 · December 1950 · 10¢ · 52 pages
Grade: FN+ 6.5
Cover artist and interior credits unconfirmed for this issue.
“The Man with a Million Faces!” — Batman and Robin go up against a master of disguise operating out of a circus environment. The circus setting was a reliable Golden Age backdrop for identity-swap plotting, and this one leans into the gimmick: a criminal whose ability to alter his appearance puts the Dynamic Duo on the back foot before they can close the case. It's the kind of puzzle-box mystery structure that defined the Batman strip through this period — less bruiser, more detective.
The backup features Pow-Wow Smith, Indian Lawman — DC's Western strip following a Native American deputy navigating frontier justice. The feature ran steadily through Detective Comics in the late Golden Age, offering a different register than the Gotham material. At 52 pages, this issue carries the full anthology weight DC was still packing into its books at the decade's turn.
Detective Comics #166 lands at the tail end of the Golden Age Batman run — the title was already past its 150th issue and the character had been a fixture for over a decade. Cover carries a Red Feather Services advertisement stamp, a period charity program detail that shows up on newsstand copies and is worth noting for condition-conscious buyers.
Condition FN+ 6.5 — .
We use what the scientists are calling artificial intelligence to research and write our descriptions — it gives us more time to add books to our website and provide you with a wider array of inventory. We think Klaatu would approve. Details are verified but the robot does slip up. We're not infallible. Every book is graded by a human collector who has actually held it. If anything ever looks off, reach on out at robopictocomics@gmail.com.
