World's Finest #202--You Make The Call!!

If you remember sitting through NFL games of the 70s and early 80s, you'll no doubt remember the "IBM Presents: You Make The Call" commercials bits. (My memory tells me that Alcoa, the aluminum company, was the earliest sponsor of the segment, but I can't find firm evidence of that). During a commercial break, IBM would show us a brief clip from an old football game involving some interpretation of the rules, and then challenge us to "make the call" ourselves. After a brief pitch for their computers, they'd come back with the answer.

Well, besides telling us that NFL fans were huge consumers of IBM's PS/1 and aluminum (?), and serving as a subliminal "don't criticize the referees, they do a better job than you could!" message, the bits were fun enough.

So when I saw this blurb on the cover of World's Finest #202 (1971)...

...well, I figured, it's time to revive the "You Make The Call' concept. Because not only is the blurb a tacit admission that DC covers of the era were known for their lack of truthiness. It's a direct challenge to our fanboy whining!!

So observe the cover below (click to embiggen), and prepare...to make the call!!

1) If you read my post last Friday (and there's still time to vote for it!), you know that's not really Superman strangling Batman, that's out-of-control Superman robot.

So, fans, does that count as a "cop-out"? YOU MAKE THE CALL!!

2) Malis, the insane alien robot mummy with a red-sun-energy nuclear reactor for a head (see, I told you I wasn't making it up!) is "commanding" our heroes to fight to the death.

Except, in the actual story, a) he doesn't command anybody, not even the Superman robot, and b) he doesn't even turn up until the Superman robot has beaten everybody. Plus, on this cover, Malis certainly has a better grasp of the English language than he does on the inside, where all he says is "DOOM" and "DOOM TO ALL FLESH."

So, fans, does this count as a "symbolic picture," or a "cop-out," or is it fair artistic licence? YOU MAKE THE CALL!!

3) The cover art is by Neal Adams and Dick Giordano, whilst the interior is art is actually by Dick Dillin and Joe Giella. Cop-out? YOU MAKE THE CALL!!!