Brian Bolland did the covers, so I recommend getting the individual issues.
some history...
The original series debuted in House of Mystery #156 (January 1966), and continued until issue #173 (March–April 1968)
Each time he dials the letters H-E-R-O, Robby Reed finds he turns into a different super-powered being; dialing O-R-E-H makes him revert to his normal form. Under the guises of numerous superheroes, Robby soon uses the dial to protect Littleville.
The second Dial H for Hero series debuted in the 1980s, in a special insert in Legion of Super-Heroes #272 (February 1981), then ran in Adventure Comics #479–490 and continued in New Adventures of Superboy #28–49; the duo also appeared alongside Superman in DC Comics Presents #44.
In this series, two other dials are discovered years later by teenagers Chris King and Vicki Grant of the New England town of Fairfax in a 'haunted' house.
the innovative concept for this version of the series was that readers (mostly kids) could submit drawings and concepts for the heroes and villains. The submitters were given credit for their creations (and a t-shirt with the series logo), but the characters became DC Comics' property.
DC relaunched the series again in 2003, this time simply titled H.E.R.O.
this time Robby Reed, now grown old and bitter, is searching for the missing dial, determined to retrieve it and keep a serial killer from getting his hands on it. this version lasted 22 issues.
and then the 2012 version that became one of my all-time favorite comics. The series focuses on Nelson Jent, an out-of-shape, unemployed young man who accesses superpowers by dialing seemingly random numbers in an old phone booth.
China pulls out all of the stops, Pelican Army being my favorite example of his out-there transformations.
it is fun, it is wild, it is engrossing, a great read. collect them all and consume them one weekend. then come back and we can talk about the series.
