Thursday 21 June 2018

June 21st, 1978 - Marvel UK, 40 years ago this week.

This week of 1978 was a remarkable one for all lovers of cartoon cats because it was the week in which Garfield made its debut. Apparently, it went on to become the most widely syndicated comic strip on Earth, which was nice, although it is a surprise that Peanuts doesn't hold the title.

But that was nothing because if you were a lover of cartoon cats and you were a cricket fan, things were even better.

That's thanks to it being the week in which Ian Botham became the first man in history to score a century and take eight wickets in one innings of a test match. I wish I could claim the news would have excited me at the time but, to be honest, I always feel that watching a cricket match is basically just a trial run for what it'll feel like to be dead.

As for this day in that year, it was a great one for all lovers of deceased Argentinian First Ladies because it was the date upon which Evita opened at the Prince Edward Theatre in London.

Star Wars Weekly #20, han solo holding a light saber above his head as a monster looms behind him

Hold on a minute. Han Solo can use a light-sabre? Will such a device even work for one who is not gifted with the correct level of midi-chlorians?

Regardless, I'm not convinced that the best way to deal with a monster is to stand with your back to it.

Mighty World of Marvel #299, the Hulk and the Fantastic Four

It's that much-remembered Jim Starlin drawn tale that involves cannibalism and caves. To be honest, after forty years, I still haven't got over it.

On the other hand, I'm confident that Gorr the golden gorilla would never be rude enough to eat a person, which is good news, as it means the FF find themselves in a position that will lead them to Counter-Earth and the High Evolutionary, rather than a position that will lead them to the bottom of Gorr's stomach.

The Hulk's UK reprints now appear to be no more than five months behind the US originals.
Super Spider-Man #290, the Punisher and the Hitman

I totally forget just why it is the Hitman's so determined to bump off J. Jonah Jameson.

Admittedly, I can think of all kinds of reasons why someone would want to bump off Jonah, but why the Hitman would, I have no idea.

26 comments:

dangermash aka The Artistic Actuary said...

In Spider-Man, it's someone from the People's Liberation Front paying Hitman to deliver JJJ to them so that he can kill him (on top of the Statue of Liberty).

In the next two U.K. issues, Hitman will deliver, collect his money, and then kill his PLF contact. Bit like Angel Eyes in The Good, The Bad And The Ugly.

Steve W. said...

Thanks for the info, Dangermash.

But that does raise the question of why do the PLF want to kill Jonah.

dangermash aka The Artistic Actuary said...

He's been writing editorials that are damaging to the PLF's image. They want him "dealt with as a lesson to anyone else who might make the same mistake".

Steve W. said...

Thanks, Dangermash. :)

Killdumpster said...

My Favorite cartoon cats were Top Cat and Courageous Cat, with his sidekick Minute Mouse.

Killdumpster said...

Another Hulk story that shocked me was the first appearance of the Wendigo. I lent it to a pal of mine and he threw up after reading it.

There seemed to be dark place in pop culture in the mid 70's into the 80's involving cannibalism. Comics (the Hulk stories, Atlas Comics as you've stated before, etc), movies (Cannibal Holocaust, Alive, Kill Them and Eat Them, etc.) And even a hit song here in the states called "Timothy".

pete doree said...

I remember being genuinely shocked by the 2nd episode of Starlin's Metamorphosis Odyssey in Epic, which also involved cannabalism. Jim, you having problems at home, son?
Always hated Garfield, by the way, from day one. It's a cat. And he's lazy. And greedy. What else you got?
Recommend 'Garfield Without Garfield' though. A genius concept if you haven't seen it..

Killdumpster said...

Heavy Metal magazine always had some form of cannibalism in every issue, so Marvel was trying to mimic their formula with Epic.

I never cared for Garfield either, but I understand his appreciation for lasagna. I'm always up for thirds or forths. I lived with a Sicilian girl for a year. "Now THAT'S Italian!!"

Another Saturday morning favorite of mine, cat-related, was Chattanooga Cats. It was Hanna-Barbara trying to repeat the success they had with the Banana Splits, but with all animation. Mostly all forgotten.

Anonymous said...

Judo Jim Starlin did have a lot of weird stuff rattling around in his brainpan. But the great ones often do.
And yes, Steve, Gorr the Golden Gorilla didn't eat anybody during his sojourn on Earth, even when he was giant-sized and could have easily done so. In fact, he turned out to be something of a scholar and a gentleman, when he and the Torch found themselves stranded on a Skrull world where the Skrulls were acting like they were in medieval times.
Welcome to Medieval Times! Feasting, jousting and revelry the likes of which you have never seen!
And probably cholera.

M.P.

Anonymous said...

Cannibals are fair game but I can't accept bad mouthing cricket ;-)

DW

Steve W. said...

Sorry, DW. All I can say is that this blog has always been infamous for its controversial, hard-hitting ways.

As for cartoon cats, I think the only one I've ever liked is Sylvester.

Anonymous said...

My mother once told me she'd considered naming me Garfield (she'd never heard of Garfield the cat) - I might have been lumbered with the same name as a cartoon cat!

Nobody's mentioned Tom Cat of Tom & Jerry fame - surely THE cartoon cat.

Killdumpster said...

Man, you're right, Colin. Tom is the king of cartoon cats.

Steve W. said...

Colin, you're right. I can't believe I forgot about Tom.

Charlie Horse 47 said...

If we want to expand the notion of cats to all felines then Pink Panther rules! (Someone break out some Henry Mancini please!)

Killdumpster said...

Touche', Charlie H47-

Do you remember Pink Panther Flakes? Godawful cereal.

Though in the feline category, I think Pinky wouldn't be considered a "house" cat. More in Snagglepuss' class.

Killdumpster said...

Maybe someday we could have a discussion about funny animal cartoons that were made of apex predators. Tony the Tiger and Leonardo Lion come to mind in the feline breed.

Anonymous said...

In the song "Neon Forest", Iggy Pop sang:

The neon forest is my home
And like a cartoon cat I roam...

I feel like that sometimes.

M.P.

Killdumpster said...

Iggy rules. The album that was off of was "Brick By Brick". Not his best, and was one of his more commercially excesible, but still a not bad album.

Anonymous said...

Killdumpster, I salute your taste in music. Yeah, Iggy has a knack, like Shakespeare, of putting into words exactly what a person is thinking. You'd hear it and say, "Yeah, I know what he means. Maybe I'm not completely alone in this crazy old universe."
On the other hand, he could be pretty funny too. "Here comes success...here comes my Chinese rug." I think he was waiting for record royalties to roll in so he could buy a decent rug for his apartment. I used to have an Iranian rug and it really pulled the room together.

M.P.

Killdumpster said...

My fav Iggy Pop albums; Raw Power (of course), Kill City, Zombie Birdhouse, Soldier & Metallic KAO (that one was live, and I think a widely distributed bootleg).

"Lust for life" is my personal theme song.

Killdumpster said...

Iggy's doing alright. Just like his female counterpart Joan Jett. They did what they wanted to do & how they wanted to do it.

Guys that know them that went to Art school for advertising utilize both . I don't consider them sell-outs. I say they deserve a paycheck for their service for R&R.

Killdumpster said...

Iggy had an excellent concert video from his "Brick By Brick" tour. It's called "Kiss My Blood" Live in Paris. I'm thinking his back-up band were the guys from Alice In Chains. Very highly recommend.

Anonymous said...

Another cartoon cat was Mr. Jinks from Pixie & Dixie.

Charlie Horse 47 said...

Okay I hate to feel old but Top Cat was really hip for us kids in the 1960s!

Anonymous said...

When I was a little kid my dad raised cattle and we lived on a farm, and we had a bunch of farm cats including one we called Sylvester, because, well, he looked like Sylvester the Cat. Same coloring.
Our Sylvester was missing a leg, but he refused to tell us how it happened. He kept his mouth shut about the whole thing. Maybe he found the incident embarrassing or incriminating. He was an outside cat, but one time he got into the house and onto the dinner table and licked the butter.
He bared watching, that one.

M.P.