Sunday 17 April 2016

April 17th, 1976 - Marvel UK, 40 years ago this week.

On this day in 1976, BBC One was showing the legendary cartoon that is Marine Boy.

All I can remember about Marine Boy was that he could breathe underwater, possibly with the aid of chewing gum and he had an electric boomerang.

Given that he lived underwater, I'm not sure how wise it was for him to be using electrical implements.

Then again, perhaps he didn't have an electric boomerang. Maybe I'm just imagining it or indulging in some sort of wishful thinking based on the fact that I think we'd all like to own an electric boomerang of our very own.

How people would tremble as they saw me gearing up to fling it at them.

Then again, that'd make me basically the old Hulk foe The Boomerang who, let's be honest, made Paste-Pot Pete look like Galactus.

Meanwhile, elsewhere in this week in 1976...

Marvel UK, Avengers #135, Squadron Supreme

I assume the Iron Fist story is still his epic battle with Radion and their epic destruction of the Post Office Tower.

I remember my first ever visit to London, where we stood in some park or other (possibly Green Park) and the teacher pointed out the Post Office Tower and said it was the tallest building in Britain.

It did seem a bit rubbish that that was the tallest building in Britain. It barely seemed taller than the tallest buildings in Sheffield. It gave me a very negative image of our fabled land.

Mighty World of Marvel #185, Hulk vs Inhumans

I do remember loving the Hulk tale in this and the next issue, especially Hulkie's confrontation with Black Bolt.

Marvel UK, Planet of the Apes #78

Argh! The brains are escaping, even though they look more like giant maggots.

Marvel UK, Dracula Lives #78

Iron Fist is in England. Dracula is in America. It's like some sort of super-powered student exchange programme.

Super Spider-Man with the Super-Heroes #166, the Disruptor

Politics comes to the Spider-World as the Disruptor shows us all how democracy should be done and Mary Jane reveals that she votes for candidates because they're dishy.

Marvel UK, The Titans #26, Sub-Mariner

I'm assuming, from the bad guys' blue faces, that the Plunderer in this tale is not the one who was in the habit of causing trouble for Ka-Zar?

11 comments:

Dougie said...

That's another Spidey comic that I didn't get. At least it wasn't the Titans that week.IIRC, the Plunderer here might be a Bill Everett villain. I have had a Golden Age-y flashback looking at the cover.
Don't forget that the crossbow - wielding Hawkeye of the Squadron Supreme was h'also h'English, your h'onour.

Steve W. said...

I think Planet of the Apes was the only one of this week's issues that I had.

Aggy said...

Kennels

Steve W. said...

Now I'm in trouble. the blog's going to be flooded with people who're looking for kennels.

Anonymous said...

Maggot Brain! Planet of the Apes and a P-funk reference - it doesn't get much more 70s than that, Steve.

Seeing as that issue is a comic you've actually read, maybe you could tell us what else was in it. I missed a few around this point, but I recall getting it again for Starlin's Captain Marvel.
But maybe that didn't start til after the merger with Dracula Lives (surely not far off now)
Or - seeing as you've been going on about CM being in the Titans - am I imagining things?

-sean

Steve W. said...

Sadly, I can't remember what else was in that Planet of the Apes issue. Captain Marvel started off in POTA where he was drawn by Gene Colan but then moved to The Titans, which is where he got his new costume. I think he then moved to Mighty World of Marvel for the later episodes of the Thanos, Cosmic Cube Starlin run.

I think that Starlin's Warlock was reprinted in Planet of the Apes at some point.

Anonymous said...

Ah, thanks Steve - I might well have been thinking of MWOM, seeing as it later merged with POTA. That might well explain why I tend to associate Thanos and the Cosmic Cube with talking apes.

Actually, thinking about it, the issue of POTA here probably included the Black Panther, as I seem to recall the previous issue - which I did have - ended with that cliff hanger of Baron Macabre coming out of the ground. That image stuck in my mind (you know, from the issue of Jungle Action drawn by Gil Kane... a pity he didn't draw all of Panther's Rage)

Starlin's Warlock was reprinted in Marvel UK's Star Wars. I am sure of that, at least.

-sean

Anonymous said...

POTA also featured Black Panther and Ka-Zar at this time. This week's issue is #78 and the merger with Dracula Lives started in #88, so another ten weeks yet.





Steve W. said...

I don't know what it says about me that I'm looking forward to them merging, so I can have the thrill of breaking the news that they've merged.

Steve W. said...

Steve Does Comics, always first with the news.

Anonymous said...

Not to mention one less comic to find something to write about every Sunday, Steve.

=sean