Canonical sources - The Phantom Zone - mini series ?!?

[Super Monkey]

Why isn't this series considered canonical? I think it should be.

1st it was release in 1982, so it is 100% pre-crisis, plus it was drawn by Gene Colan (Batman, and millions of Marvel comics)

Issues:

The Phantom Zone No. 1, Jan 1982: "The Haunting of Charlie Kweskill!"
The Phantom Zone No. 2, Feb 1982: "Earth under Siege!"
The Phantom Zone No. 3, Mar 1982: "The Terror beyond Twilight!"
The Phantom Zone No. 4. Apr 1982: "The Phantom Planet!"

Review of the whole series: http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/Study/4273/ms/m_pz.html

So please post your pros and cons why this should be considered or not considered as a canonical source.

Please discuss...

[Great Rao]

Super Monkey, have you read this mini-series?

I personally don't consider it canonical basically because it's written by Steve Gerber.  Sure, some consider him a great writer - I actually loved Howard the Duck back when it was coming out.

But in my opinion, he doesn't get Superman or Superman's mythology.  This series was, like Wolfman's stories, a lead-in to the post-Crisis way of thinking that, to this day, only continues to get worse.

Also note that the editor was Dick Giordano, not Julie Schwartz.  If it wasn't Schwartz, how could it be canonical?

[Super Monkey]

I never read it, so I guess it is not worth reading

I was just looking for an answer.

[TELLE]

Funny, I assumed that, like the Schwartz minis, this was canonical, despite it's awfulness.  I should read the canonical fine-print at the Supermanica.  Mea culpa.  I share Rao's feelings about the series and about Gerber.  His brand of weirdness seems out of place here.  The Phantom Zone should be a dreary half-life full of "ghosts" --not a magical realm with gods and demons.  Just misguided.