December 21st, 1977 - Marvel UK, 40 years ago this week.

There are mere days to go before Christmas.

And that can only mean one thing.

That it's time for me to rush outside and build a snowman.

But there is no snow.

That can only mean one thing.

That it's time for me to rush outside and build a sludgeman.

But there is no sludge.

That can only mean one thing.

That it's time for me to rush inside and  build an internetman.

An internetman constructed from the comics of my youth, of forty years ago.

See how mighty he is! See!

Admittedly, my internetman won't take me by the hand and help me fly through the sky while singing Walking in the Air but, at least, when he goes, he won't leave a tragic puddle behind.

Last week, we got the prologue of the Evil Eye Saga. This week, we get its epilogue.

This is clearly wise thinking. Let's face it, when it comes to landmark stories, who needs the bits in between? They're just padding. We only need to know how it started and how it ended. Just imagine how much better the Kree/Skrull War would have been if they'd cut out all those pesky Neal Adams instalments and only bothered printing the first and last parts.

As for this issue, from what I can recall, our heroes go back in time to the Crusades, in an attempt to do something about the fact that the Black Knight's body has turned to stone and his soul is trapped in some limbo somewhere.

This involves fighting giant trolls that even the Hulk can't stop. Needless to say, after much turmoil and confusion, our heroes triumph over adversity.

In a revolutionary blow for Women's Lib, it's the Human Torch's turn to be gripped by a giant hand.

I must confess that I know nothing of Ternak.

I assume he has nothing to do with last week's Doctor Doom storyline but I have no evidence at all to back up my assumption.

I can't help feeling Medusa must be a bit cold in that outfit. Given the local climate, you'd have thought she'd have brought a coat with her.

The Constrictor is still chancing his luck against the Hulk. I fear it's not going to end well for him.

Can it be? Has Captain Britain fought his last battle?

It certainly seemed so at the time, as this week saw him unceremoniously dumped from the comic whose title he'd previously shared, only to be replaced by a hero of a not totally dissimilar name.

Unlike his UK counterpart, this captain, however, was not allowed to share the comic's masthead. The man nearly sacrificed his life for us in World War II. Did Marvel UK have no sense of gratitude? Did Bucky die in vain?

I'm going to have a stab at it and guess that these Captain America adventures are sourced from Gene Colan's stint on the strip.

I could, I confess, be wrong.