Therefore, I shall leap straight into my, no doubt highly-informed, look at what our favourite comics company was giving us in this very week, and hope it shall prove to be greatly more intriguing than real life was.
Luke Skywalker's clearly a big advocate of the Spider-Man method of shielding yourself with your groin the moment bullets start flying.
Why this method of self-defence has never caught on in real-world warfare, I cannot imagine.
Inside, Star-Lord's involved in a Carmine Infantino drawn tale called Sandsong, and the Watcher's giving us Part 2 of a tale called The Unsuspecting.
In my experience, all Tales of the Watcher should be given that title, as they all seem to feature someone who doesn't suspect the horrifying truth until it's far too late.
Mostly, that truth is that an inanimate object is actually alive and is going to eat you.
This is why I always assume that every inanimate object I encounter is going to eat me.
So far, it has worked a treat and I have been eaten by nothing.
It's August 1978 and The Mighty World of Marvel is reprinting the Incredible Hulk issue that was cover-dated June 1978. How long can it be now before the UK reprints catch up with the US originals?
Then what are Marvel UK going to do?
What!?!
Other than that, I can say nothing about what happens in this issue, apart from the fact that the Leader's clearly decided to give the Murder Module another go, even though using an inherently unstable three-legged vehicle, with a high centre of gravity, against an awesomely strong monster doesn't strike me as being the sign of vast intellect.
This week's issue's clearly a great one for fans of hospital dramas.
In Spider-Man's tale, Aunt May's at death's door and the surgeon needs Peter Parker's signature, in order to operate on her but Peter's too busy battling the fake Green Goblin.
In the Avengers tale, Janet Pym is in hospital, her husband's losing his rag with everyone, and the Whirlwind shows up at her bedside, looking for a fight.
I can say nothing else of this issue but I do know that Iron Man's strip is a mere two weeks away from returning.
Nothing very exciting to report from week 6 of 10 in the latest Green Goblin story.
ReplyDeleteExcept for one thing. I'm starting to tire of Ross Andru's art. He’s done lots of great work up until now but there are now too many quirky panels popping up. Having said that I'm such a diving Danny when it comes to Soider-Man artists that I won't be happy until we get to Mark Bailey somewhere around ASM #350.
Bailey -> Bagley
ReplyDeleteRoss Andru was definitely my favourite Spider-Man artist. I always saw him as the perfect middle ground between John Romita and Gil Kane.
ReplyDeleteAt the time of these issues, I always assumed Ross Andru's work was that of Romita. The Hulk and Spider-Man stories catching up with their US counterparts was the signal that what I consider the golden age of Marvel UK, was coming to an end. Creativily the Annex of Ideas may have gone on to actually bring new things to the table but the 72-79 period of reprints was what it was all about for me
ReplyDeleteIs Hulk fleeing the Leader?
ReplyDeleteOr is he rampaging and getting a surprise attack?
Unless I'm mistaken, it's not actually the Hulk. It's a Hulk robot that Thunderbolt Ross and his people have built for some reason, and Bruce Banner is directing it by remote control.
ReplyDeleteIn matters of global significance Pope Paul VI had recently died and the Cardinals were gathering to choose his successor - they chose Pope John Paul I who died just a month later!
ReplyDeleteAnd new at No.1 in the UK singles chart - "Three Times A Lady" by the Commodores, ousting Travolta & Newton-John's "You're The One That I Want" after a nine-week run. But the Grease duo would soon return...
Hey UK Gents! I am perusing my 18-19 overstreet price guide. Some guy has a BIG ad offering TOP $ for UK Marvel’s with a d after the price? What’s that mean again and why’s it so worthy??? Granted he is showing key early Marvels like FF 1 for 9d price.
ReplyDeleteThe 'd' just means old pence. I believe it actually goes back to when the Romans were running the show over here
ReplyDeleteColin, I did think about mentioning the Commodores but, in the end, I couldn't whip up enough enthusiasm for the song to feel it was worth my fingers making the effort to type it. Now, if it had been Easy Like Sunday Morning, that would have been different.
ReplyDeleteCharlie, the "d" is a reference to them having a pre-decimal price tag. Pre-decimal UK currency was denoted by the letters LSD (seriously). The L being a simplified £ sign, the S representing shillings and the D standing for, "Denarius," the ancient precursor to the penny. Hence, pounds, shillings and pennies were referred to as LSD.
I don't have a clue why someone would be unusually keen on getting Marvel comics with a "d" price tag, other than that they'll be older than ones with a "p" price tag. Britain switched to decimal currency in early 1971, thus ending the "d" price tag forever.
Timothy got in there with his comment as I was composing my post. I concur with his analysis of the Roman connection.
ReplyDeleteSteve, I'm glad you backed me up. As soon as I posted I started to doubt myself, I wondered if it was just one of those made up facts you accumulate along the way.
ReplyDeleteAnd with 12 pence in a shilling and 20 shillings in a pound, adding up shopping bills must have been a nightmare.
ReplyDeleteI've always thought it was a shame that pocket calculators weren’t invented ~10 years earlier. An antique calculator that added up in £ s d would be so retro cool.
I feel reassured that Steve and Timothy are in accord as I venture forth to flea markets searching for the “d”!!!
ReplyDeleteDAngerMash - you must recall the funny or foul words you could type up on a calculator, lol. Hell was like 4311 upside down. Good times?
ReplyDeleteOh yes, 5318008 was my favourite.
ReplyDeleteLMAO! I forgot about them but for 1134
ReplyDeleteCharlie, best not to announce anywhere that you are looking for the 'd'.
ReplyDeleteAmen!
ReplyDeleteSteve-
ReplyDeleteI'm in total agreement with your observations concerning Ross Andru. It took awhile for me to warm-up to Romita after Ditko, but Ross caught me instantly. He was able to express emotion through Spidey's full mask almost as good as Ditko, as well as display Spidey's strength & agility like Gil Kane did.
While a SCREAMING Gil Kane fan, I believe Andru's Spider-Man is superior in many ways.
Maybe because Gil couldn't do his patented "nostrils shots" through Spidey's mask. Lol.
ReplyDeleteKane and Andru were great. My only complaint about Kane as we get towards mid 70s is “Kane Fatigue.” He was wonderfi at DC with Green Lantern and Atom and thiose Spidey issues like early 100s knocked me out. But then Marvel started using him everywhere especially on covers to the point that his work seemed rushed, stereotypical, and almost a caricature of itself. I don’t blame that on Kane as much as Marvel.
ReplyDeleteCharlie-
ReplyDeleteI'm on the opposite end of the spectrum in regards to Gil Kane. I couldn't get enough of that man's work. Even a poorly written story is cranked up to "11" with his art.
Marvel did indeed prostitute his brilliance, as you implied. Utilizing him on a gazzilion covers for books that had inferior art inside.
Oh, but what dynamic covers they are! They had me digging in my pockets for nickel & dimes for heroes I didn't care about or even heard of.
You are also right where Kane would repeatedly use the same kind of lay-up on many of his covers, almost like he was using some sort of templates.
The man ALWAYS delivered the goods.Presenting covers that helped sell books. Poster worthy covers. When he drew the guts of a book it took me longer to read, as I would linger on every panel.
I can read anything that man's art is included in. If Marvel would have done an adaptation of Sophie's Choice with Kane's art, I probably would have bought it.
That movie is fragging awful. Merryl Streep is overrated & "not pleasing to the eye". I had to sit through that hell two times.
Back to point, the worst of Gil Kane is better than the best of a lot of so-called "artists".
Well I got tired of Sal Buscema too, who like Kane could do a lot off beautiful work but would , too, many times start being stereotypical and I would burn out...
ReplyDeleteSal Buscema is, and will always be, in my top five LEAST FAVORITE MARVEL ARTISTS. He absolutely didn't learn anything from his brother, and his brother must have absorbed the "talent-gene" before Sal was born.
ReplyDeleteThat man can't draw Spider-Man for crap.I was disappointed by the first issue of Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man. Also with the ongoing issues, and his stint on the HULK. Countless close-ups of the same angry grimacing faces (you could put a mustache on the HULK, change the print color, and he's now J. Jonah Jameson!!
Sal was a hack, and probably a fast one. If he had a good inker his garbage was worth looking at. He had nothing to offer but the same facial expressions, statically stiff body movements and undetailed backgrounds.
I guess you guys can figure out I'm not his biggest fan. I it him in the same category of shame as "He Whom Will Not Be Named". If Marvel hadn't got Starlin, Perez, Byrne etc, I would have quit buying their books.
Think Sal's books had a lot of GIL KANE covers. He did quite a few covers for Spectacular Spider-Man, that were less than spectacular.
Sal got too much work, because he could pump out scrap fast. I would have read a "dreaded deadline doom" reprint issue, than his quick scratches.
ReplyDeleteNow that I think about it, when I subscribed to Marvel, the emergency reprint books were part of it, but if there was a special double Sized edition during my scribe they wouldn't send it. Cheap-ass bastards.
And I'm a card carrying member of the MMMS, LOL!
Colin, in the immortal words of Frankie Valli, Grease is the word!
ReplyDeleteIt's the word that you heard, it's got groove, it's got meaning.
On another note, that Aunt May was always at death's door. Her and that bum ticker of hers.
I prefer the sexy, enticing Marisa Tomei version.
She doesn't get heart attacks, she gives 'em. Roowwr.
M.P.
They probably had the "TV SENSATION" blurb on the covers of the Hulk comics then. The casual readers or consumers off the spinner racks. At that time there was no early reprint books published, not even those of
ReplyDeleteTrimpe.
So the Hulk became a literal Saturday morning cartoon. Now I'd like to see World-Breaker Hulk go to Riverdale and be defeated by Archie.
Uhh..I think in Archie's universe there was a predominant character named "BETTY"?
That'd be a cool cross-over I'd buy TOMORROW! Bruce Banner, in any form of the Hulk, in Riverdale! Archie could call in the Punisher. He was already there once!