The Marvel Lucky Bag - January 1969.

Hold on to your hats, true believers, because, before launching into my look at what Marvel's less glamourable heroes were up to in the books that bear this date of exactly fifty years ago, I have to make an earth-shattering announcement. Not to be outdone by the rest of the internet, Steve Does Comics now has a Patreon page which, I think, can be found by clicking on this very link.

To be honest, it's rubbish because I don't know what I'm doing but if there's anything you'd like to see added to it, in terms of incentives/rewards/content and the like, feel free to say so in the comments section below.

In the meantime, back to what you actually came here for:

January 1969 kicked off with Marmalade's version of Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da at Number One on the UK singles chart.

That was then knocked off the top slot by the Scaffold's Lily the Pink which was then itself knocked off the top by Marmalade's Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da.

The reader with a good memory will recall that Lily the Pink had already been Number One the previous month, before being kicked off its throne by Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da, meaning both songs had gone to Number One twice and both songs had succeeded in knocking the other off the top slot.

As if that wasn't thrilling enough, there was also another version of Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da on the chart that month, which was by the Bedrocks.

The one version of the song you wouldn't find on the chart was the one by the Beatles. Convinced it'd be a Number One, Paul McCartney'd lobbied for it to be released as a single but, fed up of playing it over and over again in the studio, the other Beatles had vetoed it.

Eventually, all this madness subsided and the month ended with Albatross by Fleetwood Mac at the top of the pile.

But, obviously, the real source of excitement for all true music fans, that month, was the presence on the singles chart of Mother Kelly's Doorstep by Danny La Rue.

When it came to albums, only two LPs ruled the UK roost that January and they were the Beatles' White Album, followed by The Best of the Seekers. I genuinely don't think I've ever heard any tracks by the Seekers in my entire life.

The New Seekers, on the other hand....

I know nothing of this issue, other than it features a character called Cyberex, which, to me, sounds more like the name of an international robotics convention than it does a super-villain.

Strange and Clea are still battling the Sons of Satannish.

I do believe this is the story that leads to the good doctor adopting his, "Super-hero," costume.

Memory fails me as to why he needed it. Wasn't it because he wasn't allowed to re-enter our dimension and needed a disguise that could hoodwink the universe, in order to do it?

Or something?

Hooray! It's the start of a whole new era as the Guardians of the Galaxy make their star-spanning debut and, for the first time, the world gets to meet Groot, Gamora, Rocket Raccoon...

...Oh. Hold on. It's none of those people.

Instead, it's some other people.

And they're up against the Badoon, surely the worst race of aliens Marvel has ever come up with. Which is saying something, bearing in mind Marvel came up with the Krylorians.

I first read this tale in Marvel UK's Planet of the Apes. I can't say it exactly impressed me, although I did later develop a fondness for the team, thanks to their 1970s adventures.

As always with SHIELD tales, I've never read this one.

However, it appears that someone called Supremus is ordering SHIELD to disband in the wake of Nick Fury's death.

Needless to say, no one at all listens to Supremus and reports of Fury's death turn out to be highly premature.

I don't have a clue what happens in this one but I do know that it, apparently, features the first appearance of both Naga and Karthon.

I don't have a clue who either of those people are but they seem to be involved with the Serpent Crown and that can only mean bad news for the Sub-Mariner.

I believe I do detect a Herb Trimpe cover with fairly major alterations by other hands.

STOP PRESS!

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One side features this site's lovely logo and the other features a drawing I once did of Liz Sanford, the tireless heroine of my Department of Occult Investigation stories.

Granted, I don't see what she has to do with this site but I felt I should put a picture of something on the reverse side and this one just happens to have the right colour scheme.

The mug's available for £11.99 in the UK and an equivalent price in Dollars/Euros elsewhere. So, if you're desperate for something to drink out of, why not try drinking from the blog that refuses to die?

The Steve Does Comics mug is produced specially to order and can be bought by clicking on this particular link.