Forty years ago today - November 1986.

Thanks to Charlie Horse 47 and Killdumpster for their sponsorship of this post, via the magic of Patreon. 

***

Excitement mounts as Marvel celebrates its 25th birthday!

And a thrilling, action-packed cover tells us that Iron Man's on board with it.

And he's not the only one present, because this issue sees Simon Steel inflict an updated version of the Iron Monger upon no lesser target than Dominic Fortune.

However, as you might expect, Shellhead gets in the villain's way.

But not in time to save Fortune!

Spidey's clearly determined to not be outdone by Iron Man when it comes to boring covers.

But what of his innards?

His innards currently contain the aftermath of Flash Thompson's escape from jail. A feat that sees the whole city trying to track him down.

Jonah, though, still has his mind on the wall-crawler and even recruits X-Factor in a bid to defeat our hero!

And even Conan can't escape The Curse of the Boring Cover.

But, inside, I have no doubt things are far more thrilling when the barbarian seeks out Ybn Lord of Assassins, in a mission to find the boy-king child of someone called Anneka.

I'm assuming this isn't the Anneka of Japanese Boy fame. For some reason, her turning up in a Conan story would give me great pleasure.

Ooh. Hold on. I actually had this one.

I remember Barry Smith drawing it and it involving Daredevil and the Black Widow vs some sort of PTSD Super-Soldier person who needs stopping before he does any more damage.

You'd never guess it from that cover but Avengers drama hits heights it's arguably never reached before, as Baron Zemo and his new Masters of Evil seize control of the Avengers Mansion while the heroes are all out doing other things!

Can Cap's reputation ever recover?

It's starting to look like it never may because, after he gets bad press for killing a terrorist, someone called Super-Patriot steps in to take his place in the hearts of Americans!

Why do I feel like Super-Patriot is going to turn out to be a bad guy?

I'm going to venture that this Incredible Hulk issue sports the weakest of Marvel's covers, this month.

But, within, things are stirring, thanks to a funeral and Zzzax being brought to Gamma Base.

And when the Hulk seems to break out of that selfsame base, SHIELD finds itself up against a new Hulk! One who grabs Bruce Banner and abducts him!

According to the GCD, Peter Parker investigates a gang that's insinuated itself into an apartment building.

I'm not totally sure how you insinuate yourself into a building but they've managed it somehow.

I'm going to venture that, of this month's cover artists, John Romita Jr has done the best job when it comes to trying to make something from the basic theme.

And it's for an issue in which the Marauders cut a swathe of destruction through the Morlocks' tunnels while our favourite mutants try to stop them.

But what's this? Barry Smith too has managed to inject some kind of interest into the cover template.

He also draws some of the interior pages - as do Kerry Gammill, Ron Frenz, Al Milgrom and John Buscema. Just what's going on with this issue?

And why is it 64 pages long?

Regardless, it's a story that sees our favourite super-team battle the Mole Man.

And it sees the Thing reclaim his place among their ranks.

Only 23 pages for Thor, though, as he returns to Earth for some Me Time. But he's soon warned by his friends the frogs that something's amiss underground.

Needless to say, he's not going to put up with that sort of thing.

And that brings him into conflict with the Marauders - and into a crossover with the X-Men.

November 3rd, 1976 - Marvel UK, 50 years ago this week.

Thanks to Charlie Horse 47 and Killdumpster for their sponsorship of this post, via the magic of Patreon. 

***

All eyes, of late, have been on the elections in the United States and what they might mean for the safety of the world.

However, as Colin Jones recently pointed out on this very site; 50 years ago, this week, all eyes were on another president when Jimmy Carter narrowly defeated Gerald Ford to become the Deep South's first candidate to attain the post since the Civil War.

Only two weeks after we saw Spidey fight that French felon the Cyclone, the UK gets to see its very own hero tackling the Hurricane. Clearly, back then, there was a trend for super-villains to be blustery.

And it all happens when the windbag chooses Thames University as his battleground, attracting the attention of its most super-powered student Brian Braddock.

Following that, the FF's strip sees the Thing on a destructive rampage across New York.

Clearly, the situation needs to be calmed down and Reed Richards knows just how to do that.

He brings in Bruce Banner.

Because, as we all know, there's no one better at calming a situation than Bruce Banner.

Elsewhere, Nick Fury asks Captain America to investigate a mysterious group of men secretly gathering at the Statue of Liberty!

In the latest instalment of the melodrama that spans the gap between Conquest and Battle, Caesar wins his duel with Aldo and thus is a future of harmony between ape and mankind guaranteed.

Following that, a monster called Man-Thing, a man called Zeke and a dog called Dawg are in the Everglades, battling with possessed alligators.

And there's yet more trouble for Ka-Zar when Tongah goes foaming-at-the-mouth mad and attacks him, straight after trying to single-handedly beat up a tyrannosaurus.

When it comes to Marvel's adaptation of the first Apes movie, Taylor and his simian chums find themselves in a mysterious cave that contains secrets pertinent to the history of apekind.

That cover tells me we're about to get the tale in which the Hulk tackles the Mole Man and his hordes, in an attempt to restore sight to a blind girl. I'm going to venture that it's the first Hulk story to be narrated entirely in the first person.

Next, Luke Cage's new status as a hero for hire on the streets of Harlem leads to conflict with crime boss Diamondback.

But what's this? Can that crime boss secretly be his former friend Willis Stryker?

Conan's still having trouble with a giant shadow that likes to kill everyone. Against a foe like that, I'm suspecting he may need the help of a giant golden scorpion.

And A Life On The Line sees Daredevil and the Black Panther investigate - and attempt to stop - a gang that's been recruiting disadvantaged young people.

Spidey has more headaches than ever when the Jackal offers the Scorpion a chance for revenge against the hero.

This leads the villain to a hospital.

And this leads to the anthropomorphic arthropod being forced to apologise to Aunt May for frightening her.

Thor, meanwhile, is still trying to put an end to Loki's rule in Asgard.

And I do believe Iron Man continues to battle a security guard granted extra powers by a Lucifer determined to get back into our world.

The Invaders, on the other hand, are still trying to foil the U-Man's plot to kill Winston Churchill, with the Sub-Mariner feeling particularly motivated to do so.

And Spider-Man encounters a Vision suffering mysterious seizures. Trying to find the source of the problem leads the pair to the Puppet Master who now has control of an alien robot called the Monstroid. A machine whose activities are interfering with the Vision's brain functions!

Things are hotting up for both the Avengers and Olympus when the gang attempt to restore Hercules' lost memories and Hawkeye explains how he returned to Earth after the Kree-Skrull War and got himself a snazzy new costume that's bound to wow the fans.

Weirdly, my strongest memory of this one is that it features a chat between the Vision and Jarvis during sandwich preparation.

In another part of New York, Dr Faustus continues his campaign to drive Captain America mad with hallucinations of Bucky.

But can it be that the Star-Spangled psychiatric specimen has begun to see through the Freudian trickery? 

Elsewhere, Triton's been captured by a film crew but soon breaks free, overwhelms them and escapes into the ocean.

Prince Namor has much on his plate when he discovers the Mad Thinker, Puppet Master and Egghead are planning to conquer America by using a device that's capable of shutting down electrical and mechanical systems.

As you'd expect, this leads to him teaming up with the Original Human Torch. But, then, the pair discover the "Torch" is actually a brainwashed Toro!

Finally, Satan gets Roxanne Simpson to abandon her protection of the Ghost Rider who subsequently loses much of his power but must still fight someone called Inferno!

The Marvel Lucky Bag - November 1976.

Thanks to Charlie Horse 47 and Killdumpster for their sponsorship of this post, via the magic of Patreon. 

***

A wise man called Cliff once said, "Carrie doesn't live here anymore."

Then he added, "Carrie used to room on the second floor."

I don't know if either of those claims has since proven to be correct but I do know that in November 1976, Carrie was living in your local cinema.

That's because it was the month that saw the release of the film of the same name.

And it wasn't alone, for that November also saw the unveiling of Assault on Precinct 13, The Last Tycoon, Rocky, Shout at the Devil, Network, Buffalo Rider and, of course, Sybil.

Of the above, I think the only ones I've ever seen are Carrie, Assault on Precinct 13 and parts of Rocky. Therefore, in the absence of true insight, I shall declare Assault on Precinct 13 to be the official Steve Does Comics Movie of the Month.

But hooray! The cover declares Warlock to have been unleashed at last!

Unfortunately, this also happens to be the last issue of his book. Therefore, I can only assume he's used this new-found freedom to flee the scene.

I'm certain I read this epic in the pages of Marvel UK's Star Wars Weekly but must confess to having no recollection of the events that occur within.

I do know, though, that it introduces us to such luminaries as Marr Gar, Lamilm Gor, the Ancient Traveller and, last but not, I'm sure, least, Constable Trueheart.

Sadly, I don't recall who any of those majestically monikered people are.

However, I certainly do recall the events in this one, as we finally get the Red Sonja/Conan clash we've all been demanding.

When the Sonj delivers a stolen page, from the Book of Skelos, to the sorcerer Karanthes, it turns out Conan's been following her and wants the page for himself.

And not one of that trio is the type to discuss things reasonably.

But, now, it's an even greater clash of the titans than Red Sonja vs Conan!

Now, we encounter the Dracula vs Silver Surfer clash we may never have expected to see.

I wish I could give a blow-by-blow description of what transpires within but my recollections of it are vague.

I do, however, have a feeling the Surfer's summoned by someone, specifically to put a stop to the lord of all vampires!

Thor lands himself his fifth annual and I do believe it tells us of a time in the past when Hercules challenged the thunder god - and tensions escalated so badly it led to an unwinnable war between Asgard and Olympus!

And, of course, it was all the fault of Loki.

But what's this? It's not just Thor who gets an annual? So does Luke Cage?

I have a feeling this is the adventure in which our hero for hire visits Japan and has an encounter with Moses Magnum who's up to his usual magma disrupting tricks.

It's not a team-up that should be possible but the Thing and Doc Savage join forces to combat a living black hole!

It's starting to look like everyone's getting an annual, because, now, the Defenders score their first-ever.

In it, the Red Guardian and Nighthawk visit France, in a bid to stop Nebulon's Bozos but are quickly captured by the Headmen!

And so are the rest of the gang.

And Jack Norriss!

The Avengers' sixth annual sees the gang re-encounter both Nuklo and the Living Laser in a thriller called No Final Victory!

Meanwhile, the issue's second strip is Night Vision! starring the android of that name, in a tale which seems to see the return of the Whirlwind.

It's a bad time for those who like their Marvel comics to be a bit more ambitious because it's not just Warlock that's biting the dust. So is Amazing Adventures.

And, in a huge blow to those of us still hoping for an Apeslayer revival, it's taking Killraven with it!

I have read this one but, again, recollections are vague and I suspect this series somewhat splutters out but I do believe Killraven and his friends encounter a strange creature in the swamp.

Fifty years ago today - November 1976.

Thanks to Charlie Horse 47 and Killdumpster for their sponsorship of this post, via the magic of Patreon. 

***

November 1976 was a great month for fans of aquatic cake holes, as it saw the discovery of the first known megamouth shark.

But enough of that. Let's see what the big mouths of Marvel are getting up to.

Given that the Whizzer is about eighty, by this point and has been established as having a bad heart and possibly died at the end of the first Nuklo story, it is surprising that he seems to be causing the Avengers so much trouble and that he's even declared to be capable of killing them.

Regardless, it seems that he goes on the rampage in the Avengers Mansion and that the Living Laser is also in this mighty melodrama.

It's the clash we've all been waiting for when Conan meets Kull and, oddly enough, it all leads to a fight between them.

And, as far as I can recall, a sneaky wizard is behind it all!

Needless to say, the tussle ends in a draw, with Conan and Kull going their separate ways after thwarting evil.

Now it seems we'll never know which is the best barbarian.

I must confess I've no idea what's going on here but, given the cover's mention of the Alamo, and the issue's year of publication, I shall assume it's somehow tied in with the Bicentennial celebrations.

Regardless, the GCD informs me that Cap must visit another dimension, in order to look for the Falcon and Leila.

It looks like the man without fear has his hands full when not only does he have to find the junkie wife of the mad bomber who's attacking the city, he must also locate a runaway boy with haemophilia.

Hooray! Having reappeared last issue, the Impossible Man is still with us!

Granted, I may be alone in being pleased about that.

And definitely not pleased about it are the staff of Marvel Comics because, no sooner has he arrived on Earth than he decides to invade the company's offices and demand it launch a new comic in his honour.

I struggle to recall; is this Crypto-Man the same one who, several years earlier, appeared in Thor's strip?

More importantly, I do believe this issue sees the death of Jarella when she and Bruce take a trip into town and run across the metal menace robbing a bank!

All I know of this one is the Melter is back and it features a character called Krissy Longfellow.

It also seems to feature a second Iron Man!

I still, to this day, am not sure if there really are cable cars in New York City. I can't say I've ever seen them in any TV show or movie. So, I'm still not certain if they weren't just made up for this thriller.

All that aside, Spidey, the Punisher and Night-Crawler join forces but that's somehow not enough to prevent Jigsaw from capturing the wall-crawler!

But what's this? Things are afoot, elsewhere, as J Jonah Jameson recruits a scientist called Marla Madison to his crusade against our hero?

What's going on in this one?

That's what you probably want me to tell you.

But I don't know what's going on in this one.

I do, though, note that it features a character called Trogg. I shall, therefore, assume he's the, "Most awesome monster of all," mentioned on the front cover.

And that's not all, because there's also a 5-page Tale of Asgard from David Anthony Kraft and Pablo Marcos. One which would appear to involve Thor and a storm giant.

October 27th, 1976 - Marvel UK, 50 years ago this week.

Thanks to Charlie Horse 47 and Killdumpster for their sponsorship of this post, via the magic of Patreon. 

***

It was time to stick a safety pin through your nose and practice your gobbing because this was the week that saw the release of New Rose by the Damned, seemingly the first single ever to be marketed as punk rock.

Elsewhere, racing driver James Hunt became the Formula One world champion.

But of far more interest to me would have been that, on October 27th, BBC Two was showing The Mind Beyond: Stones; a drama in which a series of strange events related to Stonehenge lead an Oxford historian to wonder if it's true that stones and curses go hand in hand.

I have no memory of this masterpiece but news of it makes me feel I may have found a worthy bedfellow to Children of the Stones and that BBC Ghost Story for Christmas in which a man and woman decide to move a fallen standing stone in their garden, only for it to cause nothing but trouble.

And the good news is the thing's on YouTube, in its entirety and accessible by clicking on this very link.

Speaking of TV, later the same evening, that selfsame channel broadcast I, Claudius: Part 6: Queen of Heaven.

And what of music?

Still top of the UK singles chart was Pussycat's Mississippi, while its adjoining album chart was now being dominated by Various Artists' Soul Motion.

Hooray! It's the first issue of Captain Britain I ever read!

As I've said elsewhere, I wasn't overly impressed by the star of the book but did like that the coloured ink in his comic always smelled like marker pens.

From what I recall, Brian Braddock's at the bank when a bunch of heavily-armed men try to rob it.

Needless to say, our patriotic pole vaulter soon pounces to preclude such plundersome pilfering. 

But the Fantastic Four?

Reed's latest attempt at turning the Thing back to normal has resulted in turning him back to evil. And now the brick-faced bludgeoner is on the rampage around town!

Elsewhere, as far as I can ascertain, Captain America introduces Nick Fury to his old pal Jimmy Woo - not to be confused with Jimmy Choo - and I assume there's flashback action going on as regards the famed Northeast Blackout of 1965.

In this week's thrilling sequel to Conquest of the Planet of the Apes, the aftermath of the latest clash between apes and men sees Caesar spare Governor Breck's life and prevent Aldo from killing McDonald.

However, that leads to Aldo challenging Caesar to a battle to the death to decide just who leads the apes from now on.

My knowledge of the rest of the issue is limited but that cover tells me Ka-Zar's against the sinister Skull of the Lizard-Men which suggests to me he's still up against Sheesa, following the abduction of the Zebra-People.

I can shed no light upon just what is this week's venerable short story that's narrated by Dracula, nor what the Man-Thing may or may not be up to.

But I do know that, in Marvel's adaptation of the original Apes movie, Zira's nephew liberates Taylor and Nova from their cage.

I detect the arrival of the world's greatest poetry-spouting triceratops. And it's not every issue you can say that about.

And it all happens when the Hulk, Thunderbolt Ross and Clay Quartermain are prisoners of the Gremlin in his Siberian fortress Bitterfrost. 

Not to worry though because SHIELD soon destroys that fortress, with a nuclear satellite!

Elsewhere, having accidentally gained super-powers and escaped from prison, the man called Lucas adopts the name of Luke Cage and becomes a hero for hire on the streets of Harlem. An act that soon attracts the attention of the criminal known as Diamondback.

Elsewhere, Conan joins Murilo’s Crimson Company and travels to Ophir where they discover an ancient temple containing a mysterious ring.

But when a guard picks it up, he transforms into a monstrous shadow creature!

And, in the guise of Kid Gawaine, Daredevil would appear to still be in the process of busting the Phoenix Organisation’s criminal boxing activities. Is it just me or does this story feel like it's been going on for months? I mean, in his first issue, it only took Hornhead about six pages to bring down the Fixer's racket and he spent half of that time falling out of a window.

But can it be?

Yes, it can.

The Scorpion returns, for the first time since the days of Steve Ditko.

Considering how epic his first appearance was, it seems strange that he was used so sparingly in the strip from that point on.

Perhaps more importantly, Peter Parker's told the fingerprints of the mysterious Gwen Stacy lookalike exactly match those of the real Gwendolyne!

Having given up on fighting Durok the Demolisher, Thor returns to Asgard to confront Loki who intends to marry Sif - but the thunder god gets separated from his hammer, leaving him on the brink of turning back into puny Donald Blake!

Iron Man continues to be up against a security guard powered by Lucifer.

In the Invaders' strip, the Sub-Mariner takes on the Atlantean villain U-Man who's working for the Nazis and may be out to kill Churchill.

And, with Spider-Man dying from a toxin, the X-Men defeat Morbius to rescue the one scientist who can save our hero.

How can you not love it? Ares is out to stir up a war on Earth and we get the return of both Hercules and Hawkeye. Not to mention the chance to see just how much Barry Smith's style's changed since his previous stint on the strip, way back in Adamantium's origin tale.

Then, it's a drama we'll never forget, as Captain America asks psychiatrist Dr Faustus to help him overcome his recurring nightmares about Bucky.

But, unbeknownst to Cap, Faustus is actually driving him insane with drugs, disguises and elaborate hallucinations!

Next, Triton leaves Attilan, in search of adventure but, after mistaking a monster-movie production for a genuine attack, he assaults the film crew and is captured and transported to New York, in a water tank!

Subby, in his strip, confronts Naga, ruler of Lemuria, who's deceived him about Lady Dorma's death. In fact, the victim was Karthon's sister. Enraged, Karthon kills Naga and leads Lemuria towards peace and freedom. Hooray!

And Satan snatches Roxanne Simpson away to Hell and torments her with visions of her father's suffering, in a bid to break her spirit and make her renounce her protection of Johnny Blaze!

Speak Your Brain! Part 137.

Thanks to Charlie Horse 47 and Killdumpster for their sponsorship of this post, via the magic of Patreon. 

***

Image by Tumisu
from Pixabay

Talk is cheap but speech is free.

What a bombshell discovery.

But one that leads us into the senses-shattering return of the feature that all of humanity and beyond is talking about.

It's the one in which you and you alone, as well as everyone else, can choose the topic of debate.

Therefore, make sure to register that topic in the comments section below, before it's too late and we're forced, by time, to move on to contemplating the contents of Captain Britain's third issue in our Thursday post.

The DC Lucky Bag - October 1976.

Thanks to Charlie Horse 47 and Killdumpster for their sponsorship of this post, via the magic of Patreon. 

***

DC comics are back.

But do they have much front?

Thanks to the power of television, a brand new heroine makes her debut and the world of comics will never be the same again!

Exactly what happens in this month's main strip is sketchy within my mind but I do know it's all delivered by Denny O'Neil and Dick Giordano and titled Isis... As in Crisis!

Happily, the tale also includes her origin!

That's followed by a Captain Marvel tale in which Billy Batson and his friend Whitey are filming a documentary about young adults throughout history. Except their production's soon sabotaged by Dr Sivana!

It's a long time since I visited the House of Mystery in this feature and I know little of this issue's contents but I do know its main story's a chiller called Death-Vault of the Eskimo Kings, while the second feature's known to all mankind as Tomb It May Concern.

I'm starting to think it's my month for investigating DC's long-established-but-neglected-by-me books because now I find myself looking at Detective Comics and discover that Bats must track down a villain called the Black Spider before that evildoer kills again.

Then that's followed by the Black Canary adventure A Hot Time in Star City Tonight which I believe sees the blonde bombshell up against the deadly menace of the Calculator.

From that name, I'm going to assume he's the company's equivalent of the Mad Thinker.

And it's more Batman for us when the cowled crusader investigates The Only Crime in Town!

In it, our hero investigates an actual crime-free hour in Gotham City.

Yes, only Batman would investigate a lack of crimes.

It all leads him to uncover a scheme by a mobster and two coin dealers to steal a valuable numismatic collection.

And if we can have a return to the Lucky Bag for Batman, we can also have a return for Superman.

Kicking off, our protagonist battles the Purple Pile-Driver but he also observes two boys having experiences similar to the origins of Batman and the Flash.

When Supes summons those two heroes to the scene, the boys insist it is they who are the real Batman and Flash!

Meanwhile, this month's Private Life of Clark Kent sees the reporter lumbered with the job of showing a visitor around Metropolis.

However, while doing that, he has to keep distracting the man so he can slip away and deal with whatever emergencies are befalling the world.

The sharp-eyed and elephant-memoried reader will recall that I covered this issue last month.

And that's because I failed to read the cover date properly.

So, here it is again.

And I still know little of the action within but I do know that, thanks to Martin Pasko and Ramona Fradon, Wonder Woman helps the Freedom Fighters clear their name.

I somehow also managed to include this one in September's post.

As before, the Joker's book reaches the end of its road, with its final issue seeing the clown prince of crime confront the feline femme of felony.

And it all happens because each of them has foolishly decided to kidnap the same movie star.