Saturday 25 April 2015

April 26th, 1975 - Marvel UK, 40 years ago this week.

I can think of nothing whatsoever clever or interesting to say as an introduction to this post.

So here's what Marvel UK were up to forty years ago this weekend.

Spider-Man Comics Weekly #115, Dr Octopus

Terror at 10,000 Feet? Wasn't that the title of that William Shatner Outer Limits episode where he's on the plane, being threatened by a monster?

Oh. According to Google, that was called Nightmare at 10,000 Feet and was in The Twilight Zone.

Other than that, I was completely right.

I think I'll give myself a medal.

Marvel UK, Avengers #84

It's one of my favourite covers to one of my favourite stories, as the Avengers make the Vision a member.

Mighty World of Marvel #134, Hulk vs Crawling Unknown

The Hulk's still going Quatermass about it all.

More importantly, we get the legendary Dr Doom/Daredevil body-swap tale in which Doom takes over DD's body but somehow never manages to notice that he's blind.

And they claim he's a genius.

Marvel UK, Dracula Lives #27

Is that a Neal Adams cover I espy?

It's weird how right the painted covers look on Marvel UK's Planet of the Apes but how out of place they seem on Dracula Lives. I can only put it down to the fact that Dracula Lives has a clumsier and more intrusive masthead.

Marvel UK, Planet of the Apes #27, Museum of Terror

You'd never know it from the cover but it's yet another instalment of the Apeslayer saga.

This is the third Marvel UK mag this week to feature the word, "Terror," on the cover. Clearly, it was a very scary weekend for us readers. I'm amazed I got though it with sanity intact.

I think I'll give myself another medal.

Marvel UK, Savage Sword of Conan  #8

I seem to remember this being about Conan deciding to loot a tomb and consequently coming up against a supernatural menace that fair threatens to destroy him and his female companion. I do wonder if he ever feels like he's trapped in Groundhog Day?

Still no clues given to us as to what the Ka-Zar story is about.

Marvel UK, The Super-Heroes #8, Thor vs Silver Surfer

Surely one of the greatest comic book covers of all time, as the Surfer meets Thor.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

I rather like the painted cover on Dracula Lives - very gothic. But there were another 60 issues of DL after this and painted covers were never used again.

Anonymous said...

IIRC, Doom did not notice that Daredevil was blind, because of Daredevil's radar sense, which Doom did not perceive as blindness.

The Doom-and-Daredevil-in-each-other's-body story led to a crossover in Fantastic Four #73. The FF fought Daredevil, thinking he was still Dr. Doom.

Anonymous said...

Exactly 40 years after the Vision joined the Avengers, in Britain, he does so, again, on the big screen. Surely not a coincidence?

Actually, very likely it is...

DW

Steve W. said...

Colin, Anon and DW. Thanks for your comments. :)