July 1971. Infamy, infamy! They've all got it in for me!

Hooray! It's the mind-numbing return of the world's 28th greatest blog, as Steve Does Comics takes a break from decorating for long enough to find out what our favourite Marvel heroes were up to in the month of July exactly forty years ago.

As always, like the Roman emperor after whom that month is named, they were involved in no end of mischief. I don't know, will they never learn to get through a day without receiving a punch in the bracket, like the rest of us can? As Will Self would no doubt concur, the whole imbroglio is positively epiphenomenal.

One of my favourite Gil Kane covers sees Spider-Man losing both his grip and the spider-symbol on his back as the Green Goblin causes him yet more trouble.

I seem to recall there's lots of up-the-nose action in this one - and I'm not just talking about Harry Osborn's recreational activities.

The Avengers #90 sees the preamble to the Kree/Skrull War continue as the Avengers fight Ronan the Accuser at the North or South Pole.

I first read this in a weekly UK Avengers issue that also featured a reprint of Conan the Barbarian #44, in which Red Sonja in one panel looked surprisingly like my then English teacher Mrs King. What a strange world the world of the 1970s was.

From what I can remember of this, Captain America decides to become a beat cop, no doubt so he can help normal people.

I don't have a clue what else happens in it. I like to think that at some point the Falcon gives him a speech about, "The ordinary Joes in the street," and how each and every one of them is, "a hero, just for managing to hold it together in this crazy world."

I believe this is an adaptation of a Robert E Howard tale in which Conan and a bunch of others hang around in a house for a whodunit tale that I have fond memories of.

It's horn head vs hornier head as the the man without useful powers takes on Man-Bull for what I assume to be the first time.

Is that a Herb Trimpe cover I detect? It mentions Mr Kline. Does this mean we've got to the Widow's debut yet?

As every good comic reader knows, there's nothing more designed to set the pulse alight than a fight between the Thing and the Hulk, even though it's always obvious who's going to win.

I never read this as a kid, much to my then disappointment.

I've still not read it. What's the matter with me? Amazon, here I come.

Another Herb Trimpe cover as we get one of my favourite Hulk tales from my favourite Hulk era. Doc Samson makes his first-ever appearance and Bruce Banner finds himself green with envy.

Is that another Herb Trimpe cover? Marvel were getting their money's worth out of him this month as Iron Man has yet another adventure that I have no memory of.

This is the one where Odin deadeds Hela. Yet another reason I can't stand the mad old duffer.

Still you can't keep a good woman down and by the end of the tale she's back in the best of health after demonstrating that, frankly, she's a lot more useful to the world than Odin is.