Thanks to Charlie Horse 47 and Killdumpster for their sponsorship of this post, via the magic of Patreon. ***
There comes a time in every man's life when he must revisit the scene of a tragedy.
Today is that day because it was forty years ago this week that Joe Dolce hit the Number One spot on the UK singles chart, thanks to his record Shaddup You Face.
This, of course, means I'm legally obliged to mention that it kept Ultravox's Vienna from the top of the chart, a feat it replicated for week after week after week, plunging a whole generation into despair at the iniquity of the world.
If a whole generation - and Midge Ure - were devastated, there was no such disappointment for Phil Collins. His album Face Value ascended to supremacy on the British album chart, even as all that was going on.
Just as I shall now smoothly ascend down this page to see what our fave UK books were up to, there and then.
Common sense might lead one to assume this issue features the Thor vs Hulk battle I recently covered in the Hulk's US mag.
But it isn't. It's a reprint of the venerable Lee/Kirby Thor/Hulk battle that's supposed to have taken place, offscreen, during a very early Avengers tale.
Needless to say, that battle proved as inconclusive as all the others.
I believe we also get the start of the Spidey story in which a gang of crooks seeks to kidnap the publisher of The Globe.
Perhaps more significantly, it's also, as far as I'm aware, the tale which gives us our first encounter with Madame Webb.
The Mad Thinker's become aware of the existence of ROM and decided that, because he's clearly an android, that means he must be made to serve the villain.
Meanwhile, in space, the Enterprise is under attack from a Klingon vessel. And it can't retaliate because Mr Spock's a prisoner in that very vehicle.
The Micronauts are up to something or other that involves SHIELD.
And lucky Adam Warlock gets to meet presidential candidate Rex Carpenter. But that's overshadowed by the need to stop Apollo who's sabotaging a rocket launch, thanks to his flying submarine.
Ms Marvel and her new costume make the front cover, as the Kree-powered clobberer comes up against a bunch of reptile people.
The Watcher's still asking us what would have happened if Sue Storm had married the Sub-Mariner.
Elsewhere, Spider-Man and Luke Cage are about to tackle the Rat-Pack after that gang's evil attack on a disco.
But not before Cage has to rescue the unconscious wallcrawler from a fire caused by those dastardly dunderheads.
I don't have a clue what Captain Universe is up to.
Hooray! Tactical genius Devil Dinosaur sees-off the space aliens who've invaded his prehistoric kingdom, by setting a bunch of giant ants on them.
In the not-quite-as-distant past, Conan's still in what's now Africa and about to come up against a pig demon in that Roy Thomas written tale which manages to mention skin colour in almost every panel.
Dr Strange and Nighthawk discover the thief who's been plaguing Kyle Richmond's research facility is none other than Death-Stalker who they both seem to recognise on sight.
Have either of them met him before? Up until now, I'd always assumed only Daredevil had ever encountered him and that the villain's existence wasn't exactly publicised.
Elsewhere, Warriors of the Shadow Realm gives us more pixie adventure.
And, finally, Thor and Ulik unite to tackle the gigantic being from another realm, known only as Trogg.
Posts
102 comments:
Marvel UK's in trouble, this week. Why? Because it's caught up with Marvel US, in terms of both Spidey & Hulk. Steve hinted at this, yesterday, telling you the U.S. Hulk & Spidey covers should look familiar.
Why do you think 'Spider-man & Hulk Weekly' has a prehistoric Hulk vs Thor story? For the fun of it? No - because there's no new material! Marvel UK will be marking time, giving you Spidey or Hulk team-ups, and hoping you're too daft to notice!
Well, there's a consolation prize. Captain America Weekly starts next week - injecting some fresh young blood into the anemic veins of Marvel UK's weekly titles! You'll get Stern & Byrne's Cap, & Michelinie's Iron Man - plus other goodies, too!
I haven't got 'Spider-man & Hulk Weekly' or 'Team-up', this week. So, you're going to have to put up with 'Future Tense' instead!
'Future Tense' # 16
The cover. To me, the big guy, on the left, resembles Biotron, with a human face. In fact, it's not Biotron. He's the Fixer, an inventor with a seemingly inexhaustible arsenal of weapons. On the right, the goggled guy is Mentallo, a telepath/mindreader. Had Gil Kane drawn it, Bug's rocket lance would have been lost up Mentallo's nostril! To me, this cover badly needs words - exposition - clunky or otherwise!
Also, this cover highlights the wrong title. After all, this week's ROM story is the Awesome Android (discussed a couple of weeks ago.) Had the cover featured the Awesome Android's squealing head...jackpot! What a missed opportunity!
'Star Trek'
In the last Star Trek I summarized, the Enterprise was transporting a violent alien prisoner, with a sonar sense a bit like Daredevil's radar sense. Since then, Kirk encountered a haunted house in space, where he rescued a mystery lady with amnesia (yes, one of those again!) Worse still, Spock's been captured (by the Klingons, of course!)
'Mystery ladies' are Kull story devices. Kull's first 'mystery lady' (with amnesia) was a Lovecraftian monster who killed Lorkar, the beast man. Kull's next 'mystery lady' (with amnesia) lasted until Kull's final story. Likewise, in 'Weirdworld', Tyndall the elf's egg born girlfriend, Velanna, whom he found inside a whale's skeleton (c.f. Moby Dick chapter 'The Bower of Arsaciades'), also had amnesia. In short, 'mystery ladies' are a well-trodden path in Marvel UK, of late.
Anyway, the story. From his cell, the violent alien cryptically tells Kirk that the 'mystery lady' has the answer he seeks, although she doesn't realize it (c.f. riddle princess trope?) Suddenly, the Enterprise comes under phaser attack (it's Klingons, of course!) - and monsters appear all over the ship!
As well as Spock, the Klingons captured the haunted house in space's horror film archivist, and are projecting his memories of horror monsters into the Enterprise, using a "thought enhancer" ! The Klingons, to gain the horror archivist's cooperation, let him use the "thought enhancer" to recreate his dead wife (the "mystery lady".) As Spock correctly deduces, the Klingons are using the caged, violent alien, with a sonar sense, to project the horror monsters, via a skull implant!
Regarding the archivist's wife, what is it about "Future Tense" & dead wives, anyway? In "Micronauts", Bug was interring his dead wife, only a few weeks ago. And didn't ROM's wife, Ray-na, snuff it, when he joined "Future Tense" (I can't exactly remember)? But...I digress.
'Star Trek' lacks credits, but Klaus Janson's inking is evident in its thick lines.
'Micronauts'
The Enigma Force is now enabling Arcturus Rand to read people's minds. Unfortunately, though, it still hasn't improved his leadership style, with its Cyclops-like abrasiveness.
Suddenly, the Micronauts' ship ('The Endeavour' - for you Captain Cook & Morse fans) is attacked by Mentallo & the Fixer. Mentallo is a former S.H.I.E.L.D. telepath, who went rogue, whilst the Fixer invents goofy weapons, with names like 'scramble-shroud', 'Jericho tubes', 'shatter spheres' & 'neutrino shells'. Incidentally, in 'Savage Action', Dum Dum Dugan's circus mentalist, whom the dastardly Englishman wanted to open his safes, was also called 'Mentallo', I seem to remember. But...I digress.
The two villains were sprung from their cell, by mysterious "master(s)". Is the suspense killing you? Well, it's Hydra!
The Fixer attacks the Micronauts, whilst Mentallo's job is to anticipate their defenses. The Micronauts overcome the Fixer's succession of goofy weapons; then, Arcturus Rand uses his mind reading powers on Mentallo, to discover what's going on. It turns out, the S.H.I.E.L.D. Esper machine (Cerebro rip off?) has detected an evil power coming from the Microverse. Is it Baron Karza? But, surely he's dead - isn't he? Mentallo collapses, burned out, with a Hydra emblem appearing on his forehead. Why not just call Night Raven?
No credits - but the artist is obviously Pat Broderick. Micronauts still owes a lot to 'Star Wars'. At one point, Arcturus says: "The (Enigma) Force is with me again." Just remove the word "Enigma" ! Similarly, Microtron is R2D2, in all but name. Karza is Darth, etc.
'ROM' - this ROM story is excellent; but here, it's spoiled by being chopped into small bits.
The Mad Thinker is obsessed with ROM, believing him to be an alien android who has crash-landing in Clairton. The following section, in brackets, is removed from the Marvel UK version:
(The Thinker is feeling down, because his androids have now been outclassed by the likes of the Vision, Dragon Man, the original Human Torch and Ultron.
The Thinker believes capturing ROM will allow him, once again, to become the preeminent android master - or whatever. We are treated to brief flashbacks to the Thinker's earlier defeats.)
The Thinker starts bad-mouthing his Awesome Android, saying it's served him ill (a bad workman blames his tools), but he'll send it to attack ROM - whom he believes is a superior android - just to take ROM's measure.
The following section, in brackets, also seems to have been removed from the Marvel UK version of the story. Maybe Marvel UK think their macho readers don't like soppy stuff about romance, weddings, etc!
(Meanwhile, Brandy Clark is at her parents' house, trying on her wedding dress. She is visited by Steve Jackson, who is reminded it's bad luck for the groom to see the bride before the wedding. Unfortunately, this isn't Steve, but a Dire Wraith copy! Steve has been captured by the Wraiths!)
The Awesome Android attacks ROM, with an enormous punch! Next week, the two will start fighting!
'And Men Shall Call Him...Warlock!'
In Warlock, Adam must prove to the High Evolutionary, that good exists on Counter-Earth (similar to Picard's challenge from Q?) Adam's problem is the beast-man, Apollo, who intends to rule Counter-Earth, from its oceans. (Being ocean-based, why didn't he call himself Poseidon, or Neptune, instead of Apollo?) Anyway, Apollo's costume resembles Tyrak's (Gil Kane villains often resemble other characters - use of templates?)
One underwater skirmish later, Warlock emerges from the ocean. His young disciples, in a speedboat, worry Adam might have drowned, whereupon he replies: "No...my lungs draw deeply." Now, Warlock can fly through the vacuum of space, so he shouldn't need air, at all!
Warlock & his disciples (along with some top brass & a presidential wannabee) watch a rocket launch. Apollo attacks from his submarine, and Warlock flies after him, to the amazement of the crowd. Apollo thinks they are amazed at him. He leaves his sub to fight Warlock. To be continued...
No credits - but the nostrils are the artist's fingerprint. Sorry, couldn't resist that Gil Kane gag!
Phillip
Good that the Brits were open minded enough back then to prefer Shaddup You Face's dissection of inter-generational immigrant identity over nostalgia for a pre-war Mitteleuropa that never really existed, Steve.
If only Joe Dolce had put an album out and annoyed Phil Collins fans too.
I didn't assume that Thor vs He-Hulk battle would be the one you covered recently as it appeared twice here last month, in the Spidey/Hulk weekly as well as the US title.
https://stevedoescomics.blogspot.com/2021/01/january-21st-1981-marvel-uk-40-years.html
Are you aware the Hulk v Sabra story recently appeared twice in this blog too?
-sean
Sean - I think you've misunderstood what I've written. Maybe I wrote it in too much of a hurry! The fact that Sabra appears twice is the crux of the matter - Marvel UK has caught up with Marvel US. I don't think the Hulk vs Thor on the cover isn't the same one as before - it looks even older! It's a fill in, as there is no new Hulk material!
Phillip
Phillip, that's yet another epic summation. Thanks for it.
Sean, I vaguely recall the Sabra story may have had two recent mentions on this blog. I have a feeling it may have been mentioned at some point.
I think I should reveal that I get a bit confused because I work on the monthly Marvel UK posts at the same time that I'm writing the weekly ones, because the monthly ones take so long to do. Tonight, I was working on the one for the first week of March, as well as this post. As a result, I lose all track of which stories have been mentioned, in which order, in which posts.
Perhaps I was the one not clear enough Phillip, as I was responding to Steve's "common sense might lead one to assume this issue features the Thor vs Hulk battle I recently covered in the Hulk's US mag".
At this point the weekly Hulk stories have been contemporary with the US monthly for a while now if the covers are anything to go by, with regular "fill-ins" (like Miller's DD/Hulk a few weeks ago).
-sean
Sean - seems like we're all misunderstanding each other ;)
Phillip
That sounds like a cue for Charlie to ask some questions...
-sean
Don't encourage him!
(Kidding) Warlock's powers were all over the place back then. On Counter-Earth his powers seemed to have decreased from his first appearance, which seemed to be cosmic, and his subsequent one in which he fought Thor.
Granted, got his ass handed to him there. But nobody, even Starlin, ever really pinned down what he or that crazy gem could actually do.
Starlin established that it could steal souls (like Stormbringer, eh? Hmm.) but before him it had been previously established he could do all kindsa crazy stuff with it, including de-evolving the Man-Beast and his minions.
That Counter-Earth business seemed to me to be inspired in part by Jesus Christ Superstar. Suffering hero, hippies, etc. That, and Watergate. (boy, Watergate seems like small potatoes now, don't it)
Warlock was a minor character they thought they might as well experiment with, like Captain Marvel or Spider-Woman.
Throw something against the wall and see if anything sticks.
M.P.
Marvel UK hadn't caught up with US Marvel yet! Steve always reviews the US comics THREE MONTHS after they were published - a US Marvel comic dated Feb 1981 actually came out in Nov 1980 but Steve has always chosen to review the US comics in the month that appears on the covers.
Another Joe Dolce fan here! The real tragedy of this week in 1981 was the start of Phil Collins' solo career.
Robert E. Howard wrote only two King Kull stories (The Shadow Kingdom and The Mirrors Of Tuzun Thune) but neither featured a mystery lady. A time-travelling King Kull also appears in another REH story, Kings Of The Night (set in Roman Britain) but that doesn't have a mystery lady either or any ladies at all. The half-naked damsel-in-distress may have been a regular feature in REH's Conan stories but not his Kull stories.
I don’t know about Charlie, but I have a question:
That ‘Warriors of the Shadow Realm’ story currently running in VALOUR, is that one of the Moench/ Buscema/ Nebres/ Ledger stories from the full color MARVEL SUPER SPECIAL that Nebres inked with a variety of colored inks, and then Ledger went to town air-brushing the hell out of? Because if so, I’m curious what it looks like in black-and-white. Is it just line art, or a continuous-tone gray scale kinda thing?
b.t.
Charlie knows how you brits are all a gaga for extreme sports (conkers, pie eating, bog diving, yorkshire pudding tossing, beer deckel flipping...)
Did you chaps ever do snow skitching growing up? It was a past time for us, skitching off the school bus in winter. You too?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xNYs8Dq9ZFg
Steve - I was reading your today's post and started laughing so forking hard when you described the Devil Dinosaur's tactical genius... Man o man... where do you come up with those lines, LOL.
I'm still laughing.
(What the hell was Kirby thinking with a red dinosaur. I mean... red??? Was he on the weed?)
Oh dear... Colin has triggered my Ultra-Pedantic Nerd powers...
Howard wrote a BUNCH of Kull stories. The three you cite (including the Kull / Bran Team-Up) are just the ones he was able to sell to WEIRD TALES. ‘Delcardes’ Cat’, ‘Swords of the Purple Kingdom’ and ‘By This Axe I Rule’ are complete Kull stories that remained unpublished in his life-time, and there are a good handful of story fragments that were posthumously completed (not very well) by Lin Carter in the late 60s. ‘By This Axe I Rule’ is, of course, the Kull story that REH later re-wrote as the first Conan story, ‘The Phoenix On The Sword’.
But you knew all that. It must have just slipped your mind.
b.t.
Colin, its probably just as well there weren't any mystery ladies in the Kull stories if they were Lovecraftian monsters.
I doubt barbarians from before the dawn of recorded history were too fussy, but even so I expect they drew the line at a cosmic tentacled horror beyond our comprehension.
b.t., Warriors of the Shadow Realm must be the story with the Buscema/Nebres/Ledger artwork, otherwise the more general Weirdworld series title would be used.
I'm not familiar with the Valour reprints, but I have seen part of the Marvel UK version of the Starlord from the previous Super Special - the one Gene Colan and Tom Palmer drew (and memory tells me Steve Oliff coloured, but the Grand Comics Database doesn't have a credit) - and that was in (poor) greyscale.
I assume WOTSR was done the same way. Not sure how it could be reproduced as line art, as Nebres used colour inks and left space for Ledger to do his thing.
And you can be sure there were no fold out three page spreads...
-sean
*the Starlord story
(Apologies for the poor edit there)
-sean
Charlie, I take umbrage.
I actually liked Devil Dinosaur.
He was a mutant dinosaur, okay? That's why he was red. It wasn't because he was angry or a communist.
Besides, a green or grey dinosaur doesn't exactly jump out at you from the spinner rack. It's all about the covers, and the colors, they sold the comics.
No, they were right to make him red as a beet.
It grabs one's attention.
A great big beet-colored Tyrannosaur.
With a little cave guy on top.
M.P.
At least "Vienna" made the bridesmaid's spot in the UK. I could be wrong, but I don't think Ultravox ever cracked the US top 40. With the possible exception of Band Aid's " Do They Know It's Christmas ", which Mr. Ure had a hand in. Loved the "Vienna " lp, btw.
As for a red TRex- hey, perhaps Kirby was prescient. The feathered dinosaurs could've been pretty eye catching. Even if Rex was featherless, he might still have been brighter than a crayola- what with mating displays and all. Maybe the next question is did they have their species name marked on their underside, like my Schleich dinosaurs? After all, those figurines are pretty lifelike in other regards...
Red's got a point there. Some reptiles even in this era are pretty colorful.
Sometimes it's a warning to predators.
To be on the safe side, if you see a bright-colored frog whilst travelling in South America, don't eat it.
M.P.
sean — yeah, I figured as much, re: WOTSR. I was thinking MAAAAYbe the Editorial staff might have had the foresight to get Nebres’ ink art shot as b/w stats before shipping it off to Ledger, in anticipation of reprinting it in cheaper formats in other territories, etc. But from what you say about the UK reprint of the Starlord SUPER SPECIAL, it sounds like that’s NOT something they gave a lot of thought to.
Speaking of which, I want to say the Starlord SUPER SPECIAL was colored by Tom Palmer — I remember a nice 2-page splash of Quill gaping in awe at a ginormous space ship that Palmer painted completely (sans black holding line). Odd that GCD doesn’t have a credit for the color. Wait — I just checked it, it’s Palmer on the color all right.
b.t.
Colin - I wish you'd reminded me about the three month gap before I'd written that review/summary ; )
b.t. - This week's 'Weirdworld' art: https://www.comicextra.com/valour/chapter-16/21
Doesn't look like Nebres's usual style (?)
Redartz - 'Dancing with Tears in My Eyes' was much better than 'Vienna'. No traction in the U.S. charts?
Charlie & M.P. - Devil's definitely a master tactician - e.g. deliberately leading his pursuers into a swamp.
Phillip
Charlie, I've never seen anyone skitching in this country but I'm sure someone must do it.
Yikes, Phillip, that looks terrible. Its definitely the mighty Rudy Nebres on inks, but what you're seeing is a combination of his line and Peter Ledger's hand and airbrush colour reproduced in muddy b&w.
b.t., thanks for the correction on Starlord and Tom Palmer - that probably explains why I couldn't find a separate colour credit.
Btw, the colour stories from the Hulk mag of that period were reprinted as line art by Marvel UK (yet for some reason appeared in the Essentials as greyscale).
But that did actually exist as regular B&W line art before being coloured, whereas if there were stats of Nebres' inks - and some panels were actually shown in the back of Super Special iirc? - they couldn't be used for a reprint, even as darkened greyscale, as there'd be too much empty space (which had been left for Ledger).
-sean
Fair enough Steve and MP and Red- THe Dino could have had the intelligence to lead the enemy into a swamp.
I've saw coyotes hunt in pairs at the end of my street. One was playing with my neighbors dog. Fun. But then we noticed said coyote kept frolicking in a pattern that took the dog farther and farther away. We went hustling down the to where they were only to see a 2nd coyote, and about a million ants, lurking behind the brush... waiting... to tag team the dog. (I was kidding about the ants.)
Red? (Not you Red, lol) Really you are going to tell me the T-Rex was red and this little dude would ride him bareback? Seems a bit implausible.
b.t. - I've heard of other unpublished Kull stories (particularly "By This Axe I Rule") but I only know the three I mentioned. I own a collection of REH's non-Conan stories called "Conan's Brethren" which includes all the published stories featuring Kull, Solomon Kane and Bran Mak Morn plus some other lesser-known REH characters such as Cormac Mac Art and Turlough Dubh O' Brien. And the collection also includes the novel "Almuric" which many have suggested wasn't written by REH at all (but the latest research says it really was).
I think my favourite Ultravox track is "Love's Great Adventure".
Charlie, I've never seen anybody skitching either (never even heard of it till you mentioned it) but I did once see somebody clinging to the roof of a speeding car which looked pretty dangerous!
Phil, you could say I reminded you about the three month gap in time for your reviews next week :)
IN no way would Charlie rag on Midge Ure. His accomplishment are prodigious.
That said, the first Charlie heard of him was on my "Dopple Album" of Super Hits 1985 while living in Germany. He was featured for his song "If I Was."
I liked it enough but was not inspired to seek out more. But Charlie truly had never hear of him in the USA though his name was certainly peppered throughout mags like Rolling Stone.
He just never caught on there. And though he produced (?) the iconic Fade to Grey I had no recollection of hearing that song either in the USA in the early 80s.
I've just assumed that "Vienna" appeals to something special in the heart /soul / psyche of Europeans or Brits. (I mean, Welles filmed The Third Man in Vienna for a reason, no?)
Maybe like "Great White Buffalo" appeals to Charlie's soul of secretly desiring there would be one who would come back and extract revenge.
And for some reason "Dancing with Tears in my Eyes" comes to mind as a song that Midge wrote and produced and I've heard often enough over the decades. But not sure if always in EUrope or also here in the USA.
Red? MP? You USA guys know "Fade to Grey?" Are you also familiar with "Fade to Grey?" How about "If I was?"
Implausible, Charlie? Next you'll be saying there weren't any cave boys around at the same time as tyrannosaurs.
On the subject of snow sports all I have to say is just be grateful you don't live in the north of England - in Leeds you can be fined £10 grand just for having a snowball fight!
https://westyorkshire.police.uk/news-appeals/two-men-given-ps10000-coronavirus-fines-over-leeds-snowball-fight
-sean
Vienna was also the name of Rigsby's cat in 'Rising Damp' :D
If I Was? If I Were!
Sean - I must say that, given I have a bit of the jack ass gene, I probably would be in jail now for Covid, lol. Ohhh.. I followed the rules, got my first jab, but somehow I know I'd be in the hoogow by now.
And Sean, that's another thing. IN addition to a red dinosuar which was absurdly implausible, he had humans alive at the same time. What was Kirby thinking???
Does anyone know if Midge Ure read comics?
Colin - I've got next week's issue, so maybe I'll look at its contents before writing something that's utter garbage. Then again, that's never stopped me before!
M.P. - Do you remember when the Starlin era Soul gem also demonstrated the power to reanimate the dead? ("You supply the animation - I, the motivation!" etc) Admittedly, this also came from Elric.
b.t. - The crucial point is, did any of the unpublished Kull stories feature a mystery lady - or is it just the Kull comics? Lin Carter isn't far from Tark & the Golden Tide!
Charlie - After LiveAid, wasn't there some bad blood between Midge & Bob Geldof, as Midge was scheduled to play in front of Prince Charles, yet Bob wangled it so that he got that slot, instead? Or am I misremembering that documentary? Oh, on Miami Vice, Crockett stole Ted Nugent's girlfriend. But, in the end, she was a nutcase who masterminded it all! "Great White Buffalo" brought that random fact to mind!
Sean - Did you hear about the meteor visible from Leeds - and the surrounding area - last night? Like Colin's warning, I learned about it too late!
Phillip
You got the jab Charlie? You weren't worried about Bill Gates' chip, and being tracked by the Satanic pedophile pizza merchants?
Of course there were humans around at the same time as dinosaurs - have you not seen that film with Raquel Welch in a furry bikini?
-sean
Sean -
Through the process of "free association" and this and previous discussions...
Raquel Welch and her loin cloth, Red Sonja and her loin cloth of chain mail, and that Team Up cover above and the lizard tail's positioning: The word "rough rider" keeps coming to mind.
I don't know why. Help?
Some of the meteor footage on the BBC website was even filmed in Derby, Phillip.
Don't worry though - I hear the chances of anything coming from Mars are a million to one.
-sean
Besides, any Martian invaders will probably pack up their tripods and go home after one look at Leeds.
-sean
I didn't realize Midge and Geffen got into a spat.
I am aware they both worked on / co-produced that Band Aid album which none of my kids know of, they they are aware of the song bc it gets a fair amount of play at xmas.
And, though I own but few albums anymore (Beatles, SHeffield SYnth, and some Euro stuff) the Band Aid album (German release) I kept.
On the back cover is a group shot and Midge is between George Michael and Martin Ware in the 2nd row.
Geldoff is between Phil Collins and Steve Norman (?)
I've kept it as a way of reminding myself and the kids that when folks decide to work together shit can happen for the good.
And Phillip, a CH47 story... Our army HQ were contemplating using our CH47s to move the food off the ports to the starving. I guess torrential rains and/or bad roads were causing a lot of the food to sit on the docks and rot. Then some terrorist incident happened and "that was that." I never heard more about it, other than just a few informal discussions with my boss.
They also asked us about the same time to raid the Achilles Lauro since we happened to be in Genoa Italy, en route to Turkey, when it was hijacked. THank god that was nixed.
Charlie - I seem to remember a couple of F-14s escorted the Lauro. First of all, an Italian starfighter came up, and the F-14s told it to depart, in no uncertain terms! My memory's unreliable, though. Luckily an Entebbe type situation was avoided! Grist for those memoirs?
Sean - You're making the Martians sound like photographers, capturing Leeds & its many urban beauty spots - like the Merrion Centre!
As far as dinosaur movies go, 'The Valley of Gwangi' is better than 'A Million Years BC'!
Phillip
The Achille Lauro story is a fascinating bit of wiki reading. The US did subsequently "hijack" the airliner returning the captured terrorists from Italy to Lebanon or Egypt.
But the plan was to bring the "Rapid Deployment Force" (a company of Army Rangers) from Vincenza, Italy to Genoa or perhaps Cypress. We'd pick them up and then, guided by AWACs, assault the ship.
Imagine a bunch of big, fat Chinooks hovering over the ship with Rangers jumping out and a bunch of crazed terrorists about 10 feet away blasting at us with their weapons. It would have made "Blackhawk Down" look positively intelligent.
That's why I (and MP) insist that Sad Sack is more true to military life than Sgt Rock or Sgt Fury. lol.
If I made Leeds sound pleasant then thats probably just as well Phillip, as that comment was uncalled for since its always seemed like a nice place whenever I've been there (mind you, I am not a dog owner).
Valley Of Gwangi doesn't have Raquel Welch in a furry bikini in it, so how can it possibly be better than One Million Years BC?
-sean
Phillip:
Thanks for the WOTSR scan. Repro quality looks about as I expected it to — just this side of ‘barely acceptable’.
And as for ‘Mystery Ladies’ in REH’s original Kull stories, not so much. Kull is generally not as interested in female companionship as Conan — and honestly, it’s kind of mutual. In several different stories, young ladies are more interested in having Kull bypass the kingdom ‘s laws so that they can marry whoever they wish (NOT him), and several women are used as catspaws to lure Kull into sorcerous traps (though NOT by using their sex appeal).
I’ve forgotten the details of most of the non-REH Kull stories. The one that stands out in memory is the Moench / Bolton ‘Demon In A Silvered Glass’ from BIZARRE ADVENTURES which DID prominently feature a ‘Mystery Lady’, and a really good one at that.
Charlie:
He’s a DEVIL dinosaur.
sean:
But still....THEY COME.
b.t.
MP - "shot over!"
Let me know when "The eagle has landed" lol (around 2/23)
Why am I not surprised that Midge Ure is standing next to a Yorkshire Man on the Band Aid album cover i.e., Martin Ware???
"Ware also worked as a record producer, notably helping to revitalise Tina Turner's career in 1983 with "Let's Stay Together" and kick starting Terence Trent D'Arby's career by co-producing his solo debut, Introducing the Hardline According to..."
Dam! That's two solid pieces of work he was part of, not to mention Human League and Heaven 17.
WHat happened to this man? Where is he now? He should have been producing Band Aid not Geffen and Ure?
Sean - I'm pretty disgusted, by changes to Leeds. The market car park (my go-to car park) was destroyed, for the Victoria shopping centre. As a result, Leeds markets (both indoor & outdoor) took a massive hit, just so John Lewis & Harvey Nicks could extend their nasty little empire into West Yorkshire. The comics shop at the bottom of the Headrow (Eastgate) also had to move for the Victoria centre (OK Comics is still around, though.) In the 1990s, Leeds had 5 or 6 brilliant bookshops - not any more! I could go on and on... I suppose it's the same in many cities, now. The Merrion Centre may be a concrete 1960s monstrosity, but it's got more character than the new shopping centres. Rant over!
'Valley of Gwangi' - it starts with an 'over the top' title - even the word 'Gwangi' ! Actually, I was disappointed the 'gi' is pronounced 'jee' - it should by 'gi' ! The juxtaposition of cowboys & dinosaurs also adds a surreal element. I seem to remember an exciting fire at the end, too! Yes, I know these can't compare with Raquel - but, as a dinosaur movie - it stands tall!
b.t. - I'll have to look up 'Demon in A Silvered Glass'. Like Colin, I've got a collected REH (on my kindle), but it may just be a collected Conan.
Phillip
Ah well Phillip, good bookshops (and record shops) are a bit of a thing of the past everywhere. On the plus side, at least you have Thought Bubble in Leeds these days (well, not in 2020 obviously, but last I read they're planning for later this year).
Btw, its definitely worth your while looking for Demon In A Silvered Glass - John Bolton's artwork is up there with, Barry Smith's for Red Nails and the best of the Buscema/Alcala team (and yes, I know those are Conan rather than Kull stories, but not being a purist one barbarian is the same as another to me really).
-sean
'One Million Years BC' has a sequel called 'When Dinosaurs Ruled The Earth' which was released in 1969 but I first saw it in 1973 and it was the first film I ever saw at the cinema (my father took me because I was only 7 at the time). It's just a cheap sequel so the stop-motion dinosaurs aren't very good (Ray Harryhausen wasn't involved this time) and some of the "dinosaurs" are just lizards - even as a 7 year-old I wasn't fooled.
'The Valley Of Gwangi' is pretty good (and the dinosaurs are by Ray Harryhausen) but the plot is really just a King Kong rip-off - Gwangi is captured, taken back to civilisation and dies at the end. The fire that Phillip mentioned occurs when Gwangi is trapped in a burning cathedral at the end.
Anybody else excited about the Perseverance rover landing on Mars and searching for proof of ancient life? There's a helicopter too!
Charlie, I am glad to hear you got your, "jab", (snort!) as Sean so colorfully put it.
Ah, the idiosyncratic wit of the Irish.
I think you have to regard the Devil Dinosaur comic as having occurred in an alternate universe where early humans co-existed with dinosaurs. And giant ants and spiders.
Colin, I've been following that! That lander is going to be trawling on the shores of an ancient, dead lake for signs of microbial life! (maybe even something bigger) A lake that, I heard, has been dead for over a billion years. Mars is an ancient planet, much older than Earth.
Used to be a lot bigger, too, but something big smucked into it.
We might be on the verge of the greatest discovery mankind has made. I'll bet dollars to donuts the rest of you cats are space nerds like Colin and me.
It's my understanding they're lining up some kind of landing on Europa. Did you know Europa, a bit smaller than our own moon, is supposed to have 2-3 times the liquid salt water under it's surface than Earth has on it's surface?
I'll bet you even more dollars to even more donuts that there are weird things swimming around down there. Stuff even Lovecraft couldn't invent.
M.P.
Charlie- "Fade to Gray" no, "If I Was" yes. And there was a "Band Aid" album? I just had the 45 single. What was on the lp?
Colin- yes indeed, that Mars landing has me totally stoked. Now maybe we'll see where those tripods came from. Or at least, catch a glimpse at the rest of Marvin the Martian's species (unless he and his dog are the only ones?)...
Red - that is interesting you've not heard Fade to Grey by Visage. It's a real "ear worm," give it a listen! It reached #1 in Germany, maybe #6 in the UK. But it did not chart in the USA and I almost wonder if it was ever released here?
MP - you cool cat - you know Visage and thier Fade to Grey? from 1980.
Yep _I'm jazzed about what they may find on Mars. THat said I think we are a tipping point on our planet and the $BB being spent racing into space would be best spent here fixing the planet. As a practical matter we're not going to send Billions, nor Millions, nor Thousands of persons to live in space and escape the earth.
REd - I am looking at my album of Band Aid which is actually a 12" single. YOu were spot on!
I keep looking at the photo on the back to see who's who!
There is one chick named Keren. She is standing next to Martin Kemp of Spandau Ballet.
I was like "Who is she?" I then learned she was in Bananarama, was married to the dude from WHam for 20 years (obviously not Gorge Michael), and they are now banana-splitsville. That's right! She is available!
And so is Charlie... and we are the same age!
ANy of you UK dudes know how to reach Keren???
Charlie. I did check out the video for "Visage" on Youtube. I didn't really dig it, to be honest.
This might be one of those deals where you had to be there at the time, to fully appreciate something. Zeitgeist or somesuch.
But there's no accounting for taste. Apparently, I'm one of the few people on Earth that liked Oingo Biongo.
I've been ostracized for that, but I don't take it personally.
I take no umbrage!
M.P.
Hello, oh my brothers.
M.P.-
Far be it from me to dis a sidekick (not even mentioning any names, to many of you folks' relief), but I kinda thought Moon Boy & Devil Dinosaur were akin to Rankin/Bass' King Kong cartoon from the 60's with the little kid on his shoulder. Likewise Hanna-Barbera's Frankenstein Jr. & Buzz from the same period.
Always was hyped for a Thor/Hulk brawl, even knowing the outcome would probably be a draw.
That costume was the best looking suit that Carl Manvers ever wore. It'll probably never be seen again. Too pleasing to the male eye.
M.P.-
I owned every Oingo Boingo album on vinyl once. My favorite song is "This Is The Life". Danny Elfman did all the music, and had a scene as Satan, in his brothers film FORBIDDEN ZONE. It's a sick, twisted, sci-fi, comedy-musical that was technically Oingo Boingo's first effort. Highly recommend.
Hello K.D.! Glad you're still amongst us.
I think one of the reasons why they introduced sidekicks is to have somebody the hero could talk to, and explain what he was doing, as if he was explaining it to the reader.
And it was easier for the reader to identify with Robin, or Bucky, or Speedy, rather than the hero, who was clearly older and smarter.
A lotta people have despised sidekicks, but if the hero is a dinosaur or a giant ape, or a mute alien, you gotta have a sidekick, because as a general rule, dinosaurs and giant apes don't talk very much. Mute aliens even less so.
In the comic, somebody's gotta say something.
M.P.
Yeah, M.P., you're right. They even pushed that kid in the Marvel Comics version of GODZILLA.
"GAMERA is the friend of all children", but probably not like Michael Jackson was.
K.D. -hah!
The Japanese kids loved him. And they did most of the talking. Hopefully he didn't step on one of them by accident!
M.P.
Hello to you too, KD. As MP said, it's nice to know you're still here.
Charlie, I never knew that Keren from Bananarama was married to Andrew Ridgeley - you learn something new every day! Bananarama are still around but nowadays they are just a duo - Keren Woodward and Sarah Dallin. I heard them being interviewed on the radio just a few months ago.
Good to see you're still at liberty Kd.
As it happens, Devil Dinosaur was intended to be a cartoon - Marvel heard that DC were in negotiations for a Kamandi animated series, so as Kirby was back at the House of Ideas (many of which were his in the first place) they asked him to come up with something similar but incorporating a dinosaur that could be spun off into a cartoon.
More recently, Devil Dinosaur has been hanging out with Moon Girl - its political correctness gone mad!
What I've read has been pretty good, but then I am a metropolitan elitist shill.
-sean
Oops, I forgot to say welcome back, Killdumpster!
M.P., Marvel officially do regard Devil Dinosaur as being from an alternative universe, Dinosaur World being Earth-78411 I believe.
The Kirby view, from his editorial in Devil Dinosaur #1 -
"After all, just where the dinosaur met his end, and when man first stood reasonably erect is still shrouded in mystery"
-sean
KD - Welcome back buddy! How's the repair - restoration of your car (pictured at the top right) going? IIRC the lad who smashed into your car got off scott free?
Oingo Boingo - I only know 'Tears of a Clown" remake; it featured in a movie?
Sean - The King says it is possible man and dinosaur co-existed, who am I to think otherwise? But the color "red?" Nope, no way.
Hmmm....Why would Jody Watley be on the UK Band Aid photo?
She was american and was with SHalamar. I notice though that in wiki it says Shalamar was quite popular in the UK presumably mores so than in the USA given it is mentioned. Were you UK cats Shalamar fans?
Very interestingly, Bono is next to Paul Weller.
I've just been listening to "Fade To Grey" on YouTube and as usual I got drawn in by the other suggested videos so I ended up also listening to Debbie Harry's "French Kissin' In The USA" and "I Want That Man" and Amii Stewart's "Knock On Wood".
Charlie - I was going to ask about the Dodge! A few months ago (?) Keren was on Antiques Road Trip:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nH_SnOijt6I
In fact, Bananarama seemed to be on a media blitz - I think they were plugging some new project. Unfortunately, I wasn't listening, so can't remember what it was! Colin or Sean will tag in!
Phillip
Phillip, et al!
Charlie is still chaffed about the virus wrecking the "sheffield comeback" tour that was going to pass through the USA this past summer!
Heaven 17, Human League, Pet Shop Boys and I think ABC were touring independently. One were going to play a small venue and the other a gorgeous venue on a island on Lake Michigan (used to be the Chicago Miegs airport).
But nope, it all got cancelled.
Anyhow these iconic groups are getting long in the tooth and will start disappearing soon enough (and they weren't iconic like the Stones or Temptations where they can recompose themselves and the name lives on for 50 years).
It's now or never baby!
SO if Bananarama is on tour I am GOING! WIth a sign that says, "Keren will you marry me!"
(P.S. I know missing a concert is a first world problem. The virus is serious. That line is tongue-in-cheek lol.)
Charlie - Do you know Pet Shop Boys have links with Marvel comics?
https://marvel.fandom.com/wiki/Neil_Tennant
Phillip
Sean - If you were being really pedantic, you could have corrected me, pointing out 'Pet Shop Boys' is one group, hence singular, so it should be 'has links'. Or, corrected me, on the grounds that it's only Tennant with the link, hence I should have wrote 'one of the Pet Shop Boys' - either way, followed by 'has links'. ;)
Phillip
Charlie, I must confess to having a soft spot for Shalamar. Looking at their discography on Wikipedia, their singles do seem to have been noticeably more successful in Britain than in the US.
I'm always suspicious of Fade to Grey. It sounds far too similar to the Human League's Being Boiled for my liking.
Sean, I'm pretty sure Devil Dinosaur turned up in Marvel's Godzilla comic, and Godzilla met SHIELD and the Fantastic Four, as well. I shall, therefore, always view him as being part of the Marvel Universe.
Colin, I always thought it was either Pepsi or Shirley who was married to Andrew Ridgeley. I learn something new every day.
Phillip -
I (and Sean since he is not from England?) figured you were just using the UK form wherein you conjugate "to be" in 3rd person plural for groups / teams vs. 3rd person singular.
E.g., the England you say, "Liverpool were dominant over Everton today" whereas in the USA we would say "Liverpool was dominant over Everton today."
I know this to be true because I listen to your "Talk Sport" regularly driving to / from work on Mondays and Thursdays on my smartphone, lol.
SUITS YOU SIR!
Charlie:
Don't watch if you're offended by outdated/offensive humour:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jY4tD2Hbg_A
Phillip
Sean - Take note, visiting Leeds is the height of sophistication (for Yorkshiremen!)
Phillip
I don't doubt it Phillip.
Steve, Devil Dinosaur's encounter with Godzilla was explained away as happening in an alternate universe, like a lot of his appearances in other Marvel titles.
So far as I know though, he has been stranded on Earth-616 since that time he was in the Circus of Crime (no doubt significantly raising their average intelligence level).
But who cares? The Eternals weren't based in the Marvel universe either, but I don't need to read hundreds of pages of bollocks by Roy Thomas explaining that away to be able to enjoy a comic about them interacting with other characters (not that I can think of a good example off hand).
Charlie, sorry to disappoint but I conjugate like the Brits. Thats colonialism for you.
-sean
Charlie - Football pundits aren't noted for their grammatical accuracy - they speak in cliches. This is made famous by Ron Manager:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3NeRoSFZWbs
Phillip
Phillip - Yorkshire men... as portrayed in that link... LOL!
I'm trying to think of the equivalent stereotype here. Probably Texans who can be portrayed as a rather conceited lot, lol.
I invite you to watch the link below which is off a long-running, hugely popular skit on Saturday Night Live. Unfortunately, it is quite an accurate depiction of much of Chicago.
This must be around 1994-ish when Michael Jordan first retired.
Da Bulls refers to the Chicago Bulls
Da Bears refers to the Chicago Bears
Da = The . This is b/c many immigrants have trouble with the english "th" and corrupt it to "da." I remember my mom slapping one in the mouth for say "da" and "I was not a [Eastern european country deleted.]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NhMqjHEDmcU
Charlie - I've heard Saturday Night Live referenced a lot on Family Guy, but I've never seen it until now. I can see elements from a few English skits in it, plus some different stuff, too. It's strange how humour changes over time. I remember looking forward to 'Harry & Paul' every week, but certain sketches display - well...outdated attitudes, now - I suppose. Still, there's still lots of fantastic ones! As regards Chicago, wasn't Al Bundy ('Married With Children') based there, too - as if the city is the butt of national jokes? Then again, Family Guy poked fun at Tucson, in particular, as if its inhabitants weren't the brightest.
Phillip
Why did I write 'still' twice?
Hey KD! Glad to know that someone else recalls that Rankin Bass "King Kong " cartoon! Loved that theme song; "...You know the name of King Kong, ten times as big as a man". Thank God for YouTube...
M.P.- only Oingo Boingo tune I know is "Dead Man's Party", but I LOVE that one...
Chicago is a huge american city half way between New York and LA.
In truth it is more like a monstrous village lacking the euro-sophistication of MY and the glamor/glitz of LA.
The most corrupt city in America (usually tie-ing with New Orleans more / less.
The city of broad shoulders but small brains.
The city that works but doesn't think.
THe home of Al Capone and where Dillinger was gunned down, tricked by The Lady in Red.
The setting for Upton Sinclair's The JUngle
Stunning architecture due to the lake front (the lake is as big as Portugal).
THe home to the best university in the world University of Chicago and also Northwestern University often recognized.
The first nuclear reaction was conducted under the BEars football stadium around 1943.
The University of Chicago dominated collegiate football and then, like 1938, dropped the program saying "football and academics were not compatible."
Well... that's my trivia of Chicago lol.
Hey Charlie- don't forget that Frank Sinatra claimed Chicago to be "My Kind of Town". "I saw a man, he danced with his wife". Is that the sort of thing they "don't do on Broadway"?
Charlie - I know 'The Jungle' - I read it, years ago. The stockyards - Chicago as a pig slaughtering town, etc.
In reference to Chicago, US tv shows also reference Mayor Daley (?) a lot - was he someone important?
Phillip
Daley was mayor of Chicago for twenty years from the mid-50s, which is quite a period of American history to be running a major city, Phillip. He's probably best known outside the US for taking umbrage at demonstrators in town for the '68 Democratic Convention.
But Charlie's obviously the one to go into more detail...
-sean
Charlie, don't forget the song "The Night Chicago Died" by Paper Lace. It was a #1 hit in the US in 1974.
And the first season of 'Buck Rogers In The 25th Century' was set in New Chicago.
THANK GOD somebody besides me digs Boingo.
I've always worried that my affection for the band meant I had a screw loose somewhere.
...Sean, I've given you a perfect set up for a retort here, don't let us down...
M.P.
I had no idea who Boingo were M.P., but just did a quick search on Youtube and watched some video called Little Girls.
Your screws are going to need more than a bit of tightening...
-sean
See, that's the stuff!
Say, something just occurred to me about sidekicks. Didn't Grape Ape have one? Somebody had to do all the exposition.
As I recall, Grape Ape's vocabulary was rather limited.
M.P.
Huh. I didn't know anything about this Grape Ape of which you write either, M.P.
I got some interesting results on the subject of herbal cultivation, so thanks for that.
-sean
*Oh dear, I seem to have lost a bit from the middle of that comment, about googling Grape Ape. Duh.
-sean
Thanks for the many re-welcomings, oh my brothers. That definitely lifted my spirits at this time.
Charlie-
Yeah, the scurvy-kid got off scott-free. Repairing Green Hell is on my dime.
M.P.-
Grape Ape had an anthropomorphic dog that drove the van he rode on. What a horrible cartoon.
Colin-
Valley Of Gwangi is one of my favorite Harryhausen films, but I have it filed in the western section of my DVD library.
I made a bunch of guys in an "old man's" bar watch it one afternoon, when they wanted cowboy movies. They all liked it.
Sean, that's kind of hilarious! I just googled it too and I had no idea it was also a name for type of recreational marijuana. Why am I not surprised.
I suppose it's inevitable, really, since stoners watch a lotta cartoons.
Weed doesn't really work for me, for some reason. I don't smoke it very often because it just makes me paranoid, and I have enough paranoia already, thank you very much.
No, Grape Ape was a cartoon.
I'm not gonna go into a description of it, because I have my dignity to consider, but giant apes do need a sidekick.
And as I mentioned above, so do mute aliens. Remember Jemm Son of Saturn and Omega the Unknown? Not big talkers, those two.
Boy, Steve, you're getting a lotta traffic here today.
Is this a source of pride or anguish?
M.P.
M.P.
Dang it, signed off twice by accident.
MP-
In the Adult Swim on Cartoon Network there was a show called Robot Chicken. Comedy bits using stop-motion animation, mostly with toys/action figures. One segment had two cops standing over the body of a giant purple gorilla, in a puddle of blood.
The one cop said to the other, "I thought he said RAPE-Ape!"��
Redartz-
Man, the King Kong cartoon was one of my favorites as a kid. I even had the board game.
K.D.-
(Snort!)
That show is kinda funny.
M.P.
My father brought home a wind-up King Kong toy, about 8" tall, when I was about 3 years old. It beat it's chest & gashed its fangled jaws and FREAKED ME OUT, sending me screaming out of the room! It was like the Zuni Fetish Doll from TRILOGY OF TERROR.Hah!
My parents seemed to enjoy terrorizing me as a small child. Another instance with toy-terror was when I was almost 2, and still in diapers. During a get-together with my mom's friends, they had a toy toucan that was just as tall as me. It walked, squawked, and opened/closed its beak.
They directed it to chase me, screaming & crying, around the coffee table while laughing histarically. I took off to the opening into a hallway, towards one of those old folding wooden barriers. As I started to climb it, they pointed it to bite my diaper-ass. That sent me leaping over the edge. That's all I remember. My mom said I landed flat on my head and was knocked-out. She took me to the hospital. Thanks, mom.
KD- holy cow, you have good early memory! Most impressive. Of course, perhaps it's the traumatic stuff that stays with you. My earliest memory is of age 2, lying in my crib terrified that a lion was in the room. My parents brought me out to the living room and let me play with my green clock toy. Upon consideration you had more cause for terror...
M.P. - Fantastic topic you started - giants with a companion figure on their shoulder, for exposition, etc. M.P. - you stirred something in the back of my mind. In the X-Men, the Starjammers' strongman was CHOD, a giant humanoid reptile, who had a small companion, who always sat on his shoulder. Strangely, CHOD himself was articulate, whereas the shoulder companion spoke an unintelligible alien language. I suppose this is the exception that proves the rule! Also, in X-Men # 137, during the final battle, on the Moon's dark side, the Imperial Guard has a character named Warstar, who comprises a giant robot (C'Cll) and a small figure on his back (B'Nee). I had to look these names up - but Sean's been looking things up, too, using google ;)
In addition, I remember a film ('The Mighty') about a big kid, who carried a disabled kid on his back, them both having various adventures. I suppose this motif is in mythology, too, with the Old Man of the Sea. Also, as regards ancient Greece, there's the story of Plato & the Soldan. Colin's a classicist, so he'll remember it better than me.
I seem to remember "Great Grape Ape", from UK 1970s cartoons. We never got the one with Kong & the boy on his shoulder (unless it was before my time).
Anyway, M.P. great topic!
Phillip
Sean - As regards Mayor Daley, I vaguely remember a scene in the movie '13 Days', which seemed to imply that even Kennedy was slightly intimidated by Daley (wishing to avoid meeting him?) My memory may be wrong, however!
Killdumpster - Aged about 3/4 (?) I tried to re-enact the opening to 'Wait 'Til Your Father Gets Home', sliding down our house banister. I fell off, halfway, landing on my head! These kind of physical impacts are probably why, in our 50s, we are still obsessed with comics!
Phillip
Oooh, Phillip - you bagged the 100th comment. I think thats a Steve Does Comics first.
-sean
Post a Comment