Thanks to Charlie Horse 47 and Killdumpster for their sponsorship of this post, via the magic of Patreon.
***
Bad news descended upon Adam and the Ants, this week in 1981, as their single Stand and Deliver was finally dumped from the UK singles chart's top spot, thanks to the mega-smoothness of Smokey Robinson and his hit Being With You.
Over on the album chart, however, there was no change, with Stars on 45 by Starsound still ruling the roost.
What could topple the robotic medley merchants from Holland? What? What?
I do know Thor's up against a very odd-looking storm giant, and the Fantastic Four are tangling with Diablo.
Meanwhile, Doctor Strange meets Brother Voodoo.
Bizarrely, the cover declares these tales to be "All new!" even though they're reprints. Clearly, the company has a different definition of the word, "new," from the rest of us.
Let that be a lesson to all gangsters out there. If anyone offers you a killer robot, quickly run in the opposite direction.
Apparently, the Black Panther's up against the Ogar who's not a character with whom I could claim to be familiar. However, I suspect we're still heavily involved in adventures revolving around King Solomon's Frog.
Elsewhere, the Cat's still on the loose.
Judging by that cover, it would appear Spidey and the Hulk are in serious trouble in this week's Team-Up tale.
But, now, he's got other problems on his plate because he must stop a rampaging Dreadnought, which makes me think we're heading for the return of Madame Masque, following her period of not being evil.
Elsewhere, the Dazzler and Defenders are still up to whatever mischief they're up to.
I'm willing to bet Captain America's still trying to stop Baron Blood killing everyone in a quaint English village.
Not that you'd know it, as the tale doesn't even get a mention on the cover of his own book.
That cover also promises us Nick Fury, though I suspect that may be in the pages of Iron Man's tale, rather than in an adventure of his own.
Why do I feel like I've said all this before?
Captain Marvel would appear to be battling Isaac the Living Computer. Isn't that the one on Titan? The one that Mentor built?
I possess some vague memory of it having gone mad and turning evil at some point. Maybe this is that point.
Elsewhere, Mr Spock's captured on Barak-7.
But I know not the current state of play when it comes to Conan and the Micronauts.
Posts
40 comments:
All I can say is, I once bought a THE SWEET - GREATEST HITS album, and every song on the album was a re-do featuring one or more members of the original band — none of whom were lead singer Brian Connolly — and I still haven’t gotten over it.
That’s a nice ROM cover by Mike Golden, even if it IS a reprint.
b.t.
'Captain America Weekly' # 16
This is my final 'Captain America Weekly'. 8 Weeks later, I've got another issue, but, by then, it had merged with 'Marvel Action' - and, basically, the jig is up. Later still, Captain America gained a glossy cover, but its page count dropped to a measly 24 pages - and that was even worse! Anyway - here's the final proper 'Captain America weekly'.
As a kid, you don't understand cliffhangers. For that reason, I was bitterly disappointed not to get the conclusion to this Cap story. Baron Blood had Captain America at his mercy, by the end of this week's page count, and the outcome eluded me until years later. Nor is this the only time the ending to a cliffhanger eluded me!
This week, apart from Captain America, the other stories are poor, because the endings are totally unsatisfactory (with the exception of 'The Defenders', which seems interminable!) Iron Man destroys the Dreadnought, but we don't find out who its master is (no, it's not Hydra/Madame Masque!) Similarly, Dazzler destroys the Merlin stone, but we never learn the Merlin stone's powers, or what its origin is - it might as well be the Turnip stone! Then Dr.Doom just chickens out, when he sees the Human Torch coming.
Anyway, the comic starts with Iron Man, this week. Last week, Tony Stark heard Nick Fury's cryptic code words, so Shell-head is trailing Nick's flying car, heading for 'Project 13' - a secret site, housing a Doomsday device. If Daredevil had Danny French, who was involved with 'Project 4' - and we're now at 'Project 13' - what happened to projects 5 through 12? But, I digress....
The Dreadnought knocks out Nick Fury, then Iron Man arrives. Seeing the Dreadnought, Iron Man instantly suspects Hydra, but the Dreadnought declares he knows nothing of 'Hydra', and is working for a mysterious Mr.Big, called 'The Director'. The writer's carelessness is showing here. Considering Nick Fury is always referred to as 'The Director' of S.H.I.E.L.D. (he's even referred to as this in the blurb for this story), having a mysterious Mr.Big, with the same title, is clumsy.
There's another strange thing too. Wonderman fought a Dreadnought, a few weeks ago, and it was totally silent. This Dreadnought, in contrast, talks all the time - in fact, it never shuts up!
Basically, the Dreadnought uses the powers of the Melter & Blizzard against Iron Man - both of which he's beaten before. Finally, there's some weird hugging (the Dreadnought's "electronic embrace") - a bit like Iron Fist & Steel Serpent - then Iron Man reverses the electricity on the Dreadnought, blowing him to pieces.
We never learn who "The Director" is, or the whys & wherefores. Sal Buscema does a workmanlike job on the pencils, with a variety of inkers, but it's very much like an inventory story/fill in piece.
Captain America comes next. This week, despite it being Cap's own comic, he only gets 4 measly pages - one of which is a full-page splash. Anyway, last week we left Steve Rogers asleep, about to have his neck snapped, by Baron Blood. Steve was just "playing possum", of course, and hits Baron Blood with his shield! Next Cap puts a loop of garlic round the Baron's neck, with limited success. Blood starts to use his supernatural powers - turning to mist, summoning rats, hypnosis, etc - and Captain America's in trouble. Maybe Union Jack was wrong about Cap being the only man for the job. What about Morbius? Now that would have made an interesting battle!
The page count ends with Baron Blood hypnotizing Cap, and having him completely at his mercy, in elderly Union Jack's room, at which point middle-aged Spitfire, and Ken & Kenneth arrive ("Suits you, Sir!") - I mean Ken without Joe. To repeat, as a kid, I was bitterly disappointed not to get the conclusion to this story. Hint - always wear your chain mail!
The Defenders
For some inexplicable reason, 'The Defenders' gets a massive 10 pages this week - much more than either Cap or Iron Man. Last week, Val was having a hard time battling 4 Lunatiks. The Lunatiks see some reptile birds arriving, and think it's reinforcements - for them. Lucky for Val, it isn't! It's the Defenders riding the flying reptile birds. The Hulk jumps down & trashes all the Lunatiks.
Incidentally, how is it that, in 'The Defenders', the Hulk stays in his Hulk state for weeks/months, & never transforms back to Banner?
Next, there's a storm, created by a monster, and the Defenders must - on the reptile birds - fly above the storm. They then reach a height at which gravity doesn't apply, and they float around, like astronauts - Dr.Strange tells them to get moving. Meanwhile, back on Earth, the feds are still auditing Nighthawk's finances. In Tunnelworld, the Defenders are looking for a wizard/master of the mystic arts, who will help them fight Tunnelworld's mysterious Mr.Big, the "Unnameable One". Soon, they land in Santuary, a place with lots of eyes looking out of the darkness - and the page count ends.
Dazzler
Now Dazzler has completed her mission in Nightmare's realm, Dr. Doom whisks her back to his lair. Doom takes the Merlin stone from Dazzler, and leaves 2 of his robots to guard her. Allison makes the robots shoot each other, then instantly destroys the Merlin stone. Next she dazzles Doom, whereupon Doom retaliates, knocking her out. The Human Torch arrives, and Doom chickens off. Johnny takes Allison in his arms, and sheds a tear, because she might be hurt - boo hoo! That's it - that's the story! We've had no explanation of anything. What was the Merlin stone? What was its origin? What were its powers? No explanation - nada! What a load of rubbish! And if the Merlin stone would allow Doom to achieve world domination, how come the Dazzler could destroy it so easily?
This is my final 'Captain America Weekly' - in its original form. 4 issues later, it will merge with 'Marvel Action' - meaning the stories will get so few pages that the comic will be useless. Historians said of the Bourbon dynasty (?)in France, "They learned nothing & Forgot Nothing." Well, Marvel UK learns nothing & forgets everything. They finally made a good comic, in 'Captain America', then they ruin it, by returning to the formula of ramming too many stories into one comic! Insert raspberry noise.
'Spider-man & Hulk Weekly' # 431
This is my last Spider-man & Hulk Weekly, 40 years ago, until 6 weeks later - then I get a few more.
This week, Spider-man has a massive 11 pages but, unfortunately, it's not brilliant. Spidey's trying to protect the marathon runners - but the marathon is all a 'red herring'. The hit is on a politician, instead. Anyway, Spidey protects the race from every threat imaginable - drunk drivers, pick pockets, wheelchairs going off a bridge - you name it. Finally, Madame Web contacts Spidey, telling him the shooters are on a water tower. Spidey tips over the water tower's roof, onto the hit men. That's nothing - Ms.Marvel once tipped over an entire water tower - but she's stronger than Spidey.
The story ends without any explanation, at all, as to why the politician was to be assassinated. It's a bit like the stories in Captain America - an unsatisfactory ending.
Marvel team-up - Spidey & the Hulk/Woodgod
I don't think Byrne's heart's in the story, this week. You get a massive double page splash of a net fired at the Hulk & Woodgod - where two pages aren't required - with 3 smaller panels superimposed in the top left. Then you get another full page shot, a few pages later. This is like Colan using explosions to make up his quota.
Spidey's disgusted, and sets Hulk & Woodgod free from the electric net - but Tremens gases Spidey, for collaborating, along with Hulk & Woodgod. Later, Spidey escapes, then sets Woodgod free from his cell, whereupon the two rescue the Hulk. Then the page count ends.
The Cat
The Cat defeats Malcolm Donalbain's goons, then confronts him in a dark room where her enhanced eyesight allows her to see, but he can't. She then extends her claws, at which point Donalbain shoots himself, rather than face her claws (although it might also be his pathological fear of being touched.) Another unsatisfactory ending to a story introducing a promising character.
Phillip
Sanctuary - damn typos!
There are a lot of unsatisfactory endings in ASM around this time. The fight ends and you turn the page expecting to see another page of story to close it off (like the classic Ditko school-the-next-day scenes) but there's nothing there! Everything just ends abruptly. Maybe it's even the absence of those summing up/concluding/looking forward to next issue panels that Stan used to do so well.
Dangermash - What annoys me, is Spider-man is being disrespected, as a character. At his best, Spidey is a very formidable customer. In stories like this, Daredevil, the Black Panther - in fact, anybody - could solve the case. After all, there's no super villain. For a Spider-man story, it's pointless.
Perhaps, if several titles endings aren't tied up, is it the editor who's at fault?
Phillip
No more info on the weeklies for a while after this batch then, Phillip?
What happened in mid-June 1981?
Steve, so far as I know the only time Dr Strange met Brother Voodoo was in Doc #47, which is cover dated August '81. Assuming the Demons Of Diablo is from the start of Byrne's solo run in FF #232 - cover-dated July '81 - it could be argued the material from Marvel Action was "All new!" as the US imports hadn't appeared in the UK yet.
Ok, limited quantities would have been sold in the new-fangled comic shops around the same time as the American on-sale date, so its a bit of an iffy claim... but not complete bollocks.
-sean
I wonder if that cover blurb on Marvel Action stating "All new!" stories only referred to the “Doc Strange meets Brother Voodoo” blurb as they met in Dr Strange issue 48 that was published in 1981 (same time as Marvel Action). Maybe Marvel UK publish it here before it the US comic hit these shores ?
On the basis that the editor should tell the writer how it should be done; tell them to polish up their act - and if they don't...well, there are consequences!
Phillip
Sean - Yes, nothing for about 6 weeks. I always thought I stopped reading comics when I went up to high school. But, it wasn't quite like that. I was still getting Blockbuster, every month, anyway. I've looked at my diary, but can't work out why I stopped getting the weeklies, at this time. The quality had definitely declined, but the Byrne Captain America was still good - I don't know.
Phillip
Oops - Paul's right, that was Dr Strange #48, not #47. My mistake, but at least the August '81 cover date was correct.
Btw Phillip, I had that MFP Star Wars & Other Space Themes cassette too. By the Geoff Love Orchestra, the same culprits responsible for the Big Western Themes... inevitably the version of the Dr Who theme was even more dodgy than their take on Morricone.
Anyone else see the BBC film about the brilliant Delia Derbyshire, and the Radiophonic Workshop last month? Despite it being a "docudrama" it was actually pretty good.
I just mention it because its been posted in full on Youtube (for those who can't access the Beeb). Well worth watching -
www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5YR50Kc17y
-sean
I owned that issue of Marvel Super Adventure, and have a clear memory of walking along the street carrying it on a still, warm summer evening, though I recall not where I was going, or why.
Sean: Apologies I didn't read your reply fully and didn't mean to be offhand saying it was issue 48 of Dr Strange. I was just(sadly) excited that I may have found out why it said "All new" stories in Marvel Action but you cracked it first. Gutted :(
No need to apologize Paul. Especially as theres only a few minutes between the comments, so it looks like I just sneaked in first while you were typing (;
And besides, you got the right issue number!
-sean
Phil, there was never any rhyme or reason about the Hulk transforming back to Banner. There were plenty of occasions (and not just in the Defenders) when the Hulk was in a calm state of mind but he didn't become Banner again. Pesky things like logic and the Hulk's biology were tossed out of the window for the sake of the story.
I kept a diary for about a year in 1983-84 but I lost interest. Do you still keep a diary?
Bt, that is indeed a very strange concept for an album. It reminds me of those bands who keep touring despite there being only one original member left - and him having been the one nobody ever noticed.
Phillip, thanks for yet another mammoth summation.
Poor Cap. At this rate, he'll soon be lucky to get any pages at all in his own comic. It'll be like Taggart after Mark McManus died.
Phillip and Colin, I can only assume that hanging around with the Defenders is permanently stressful and the Hulk, therefore, never changes back to Puny Banner.
Dangermash, I wonder if it was a deliberate editorial policy.
Sean and McScotty, thanks for the Strange vs Voodoo info.
Sean, thanks for the Delia Derbyshire link. Sadly, the BBC's lawyers seem to have removed the video already.
Dave, I don't think I had any of this week's comics. I may have had the Spider-Man and Hulk one but have no memory of having read its contents at the time.
Steve - Yes, a few weeks ago, the Hulk swam from Israel to Japan, without transforming back. It must have been stressful, avoiding sharks, etc!
Dave - Maybe you can fill in for me (apart from monthly comics), for the next 6 weeks!
Colin - Nope, I don't keep a diary anymore. My 1981 diary had one line only, per day. For example, "Today we watched For Your Eyes Only at the cinema." This was ideal for a child's short attention span, but scant on clues, looking back. I also had a Letts Schoolboy Diary, in 1982. This was also brief, but has a bit more detail. Then I had a Letts Student Diary, for 1983. It was red, with a picture of a fountain pen on the cover. I only completed less than half of this - and most of it is just young me complaining about how much I hated high school. In addition, my father worked abroad, at that time, and my mother made my brother & myself write letters to him, periodically - so these provide a bit more detail, too. Is there anything interesting or significant in your 83/84 diary? Did you get a Letts one, too?
Phillip
Phillip and Colin- pleased to hear of others who kept a diary. As a teen, I was gifted diaries and felt obligated to use them, so I kept it going from 1976 to 1982. Makes interesting, sometimes cringeworthy reading now. More recently, I've tried to keep a journal, but am notoriously bad at maintaining it. Will go for months without making an entry...
Phil, my diary was just a notebook rather than an official diary and it was thrown away decades ago so I can't remember anything that I wrote in it except for when I recorded my displeasure at the Tories winning the 1983 general election. I only started a diary because I'd just read 'The Diary Of Anne Frank' and I'm embarrassed to admit I even copied Anne Frank's style by making each entry seem like a letter addressed to "Dear..." (but not "Dear Kitty" as she did!)
Redartz - Definitely cringeworthy! At school, English was my best subject - so, in my mind, I remember being good at it. Then, I look at my old diary & see some horrendous mistakes! It's good to give yourself a reality check!
In my 1981 diary, I've just checked what I did today, 40 years ago. The entry says: "Today I started Lucky Les." 'Lucky Les' was a "choose your own adventure" book, about a cat named Les! It was a fantastic book. Does anyone else remember it? Written by E.W.Hildick. Just goes to show, choose your own adventure books existed long before 'The Warlock of Firetop Mountain'!
Colin - I hope you didn't have to write your diary entries hiding out in the attic! ;)
Phillip
Dear Charlie,
You should not have bought that compilation of Beatle's songs without reading the fine print.
While Percy Faith and his Orchestra have a fine string section, Paul's voice makes a difference on Eleanor Rigby.
Dear Charlie
That 2 CD collection out of England called "Now That's What I Call Music" was simply superb. Try to but it each time it comes out!
Were it not for Now we would not have discovered The House Martins or Nina Simone!
Charlie,
Remember to tell Colin J about a book called The Frontiersman by Allen Eckert! He showed an interest in Native American history on BitBA a few weeks ago.
Given this is a 5 star book recreated from the diaries, newspaper articles, etc. from actual persons at the time of the book (late 1700s / early 1800s in the Ohio-Tennessee-Kentucky region) it is basically factual history.
Colin may find the description of our protagonist (The Frontiersman) being captured by Indians (Shawnee?) and forced to run a gauntlet especially fascinating. I know Charlie did he and remembers it to this day, 40 years later!
And the horror inflicted on Chief Pontiac's daughter horrific and still stuck in Charlie's head. (But at least GM named a brand of cars after him.)
Arthur Atkinson part 4:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Ji48tBHYzw
Phillip
Charlie, I hadn't heard of 'The Frontiersman' before so I googled it and I'm sorry to disappoint you but apparently it's not "basically factual history" as you claimed. There's a lot of invented stuff in the book apparently so the frontiersman being "forced to run a gauntlet" and "the horror inflicted on Chief Pontiac's daughter" might never have happened. But thanks for the recommendation anyway :)
Colin, I use to wonder why the Hulk didn't always turn back to Banner when he became calm. Ever since that issue where he's travelling with Crackajack Jackson. They were together for days in the woods, eating beans over a campfire and getting along famously. The Hulk would go to sleep in the woods at the campfire with Crackajack and wake up in the morning still the Hulk.
After puzzling over this for some time, I finally came up with the answer: Earth's magnetic fields.
They are affecting his gamma levels because they are fluctuating because of solar flares. That's why he doesn't change back into Banner.
Solar flares.
...
Okay, what about this. It's a chemical in all those baked beans the Hulk ate that interacted with his gamma-irradiated colon in some way. This held the Banner persona in check, and possibly could've caused a reaction in his guts that had the potential to kill nearby trees and wildlife, or even start a forest fire. Crackajack was playing a dangerous game, stuffing Greenskin fulla Heinz Original every day.
Anyway, I remember one smart guy who, in the letter pages of The Incredible Hulk, put forth the proposition that gamma radiation caused cotton fibers to turn purple, and that's why the Hulk's pants were always purple.
Maybe this explains Prince, too.
M.P.
MP, magnetic fields, solar flares and baked beans are as good a reason as any other for why the Hulk often didn't change back to Banner - at least you spent some time actually thinking of a reason unlike those lazy-ass writers at Marvel :D
Colin - Charlie was stunned with what you had written. This book has been "gospel" in the USA for like 40 -50 years. So, Charlie did some googling...
"In order to discuss Allan Eckert’s The Frontiersman, we must start with the very first line on the very first page. It is from the Author’s Note, and states “This book is fact, not fiction.”
That is not true, unfortunately. And it is something that must be grappled with, in dealing with a beloved entry into the canon of early American history.
Ah well... given Charlie spent most of his life in the region covered by the book, it was a powerful draw.
Thanks for bringing this to Charlie's attention. He was going to re-read it.
But good ole Chief Pontiac, killed no so far away from here did get good ole King George III to take some action!
In response to Pontiac's Rebellion, a revolt of Native Americans led by Pontiac, an Ottawa chief, King George III declared all lands west of the Appalachian Divide off-limits to colonial settlers. This royal proclamation, issued on October 7, 1763, closed down colonial expansion westward beyond Appalachia.
Not that the King's subjects listened, but it was a nice gesture!
Colin - you've got me doing more googling on our protagonist Simon Kenton. There is a lot in the book as accurate as can be. It seems the biggest gripe I've seen is that the author built his book relying on perhaps only one of many historical / legendary accounts for any given "fact" he represents and not referencing the other possible "facts."
But what is history, in the end? How accurate can it be?
For what it's worth, I think I am going to re-read it. Here are some basic "facts" about the protagonist from other sources or perhaps the sources our author relied upon:
Courtesy of the Kentucky Historical Society. Exploring the wilderness of Kentucky, Kenton engaged in several skirmishes with Native Americans. In one such engagement, Simon Kenton is credited with saving the life of famed frontiersman Daniel Boone.
In September 1778, while on a spying mission in Chillicothe (near Xenia, Ohio), Kenton was captured by Shawnee Indians. He was forced to run the infamous quarter-mile “gauntlet” while being beaten with sticks by two lines of Indians. This ritual often killed many prisoners, but Kenton survived it nine times. Severely wounded after this and other ritual tortures, he was saved by his long-time friend Simon Girty who convinced the Shawnee to adopt Kenton as one of their own. The Shawnee respected Kenton for his endurance and they named him Cut-ta-ho-tha (the condemned man).
Finally, in June 1779 Simon was sent to Fort Detroit as part of a prisoner trade with the British. He was soon freed and returned to service under George Rogers Clark.
He served in the War of 1812 as both a scout and as leader of a militia group in the Battle of the Thames in 1813. This was the battle in which the famous Indian chief Tecumseh was killed. Kenton was chosen to identify Tecumseh’s body but, recognizing both Tecumseh and another fallen warrior named Roundhead, and seeing soldiers gleefully eager to carve up Tecumseh’s body into souvenirs, he identified Roundhead as the chief.
I'm telling you... this book is good reading!
Charlie - I think I read about Simon Kenton in William Dean Howell's book about Ohio.
Phillip
Charlie, I'm glad you're re-reading 'The Frontiersman' as I wouldn't want to be responsible for putting you off a book you've loved for so many years!
King George III was just a powerless figurehead so his royal proclamation was totally worthless even though he obviously meant well by issuing it.
You know... If King George had not come up with that cockamaney idea to have British soldiers dress up as Indians and throw the Colonists tea in the harbor, the war may never have happened. Crazy world.
As regards the Revolutionary War:
1.) George III was a buffoon, who didn't know which way was up.
2.) Lord North didn't want responsibility - he tried to resign three times.
3.) Two thirds of the British generals sympathized with the American cause.
Just who was the 'tyrant' Thomas Jefferson was on about? As with modern politics, it was just everybody passing the buck, and putting the monkey on someone else's back. There's nothing new under the sun!
As Charlie says, maybe Earl Grey - Picard's favourite - was the tyrant!
Phillip
So, "Pontiac", that's where the name of the car came from, eh?
Have you guys noticed that car names are getting stupider? They always were kinda dumb, I guess. I drive a Chevy Cavalier.
I dunno why they named it that, but it does have a sunroof so I can wear my wide-brimmed hat with it's tall feather whilst I am driving.
And there is ample space in the back seat for my sword and musket. With my knee-high boots and cape, I am more than a match for any Roundhead.
And it gets pretty decent gas mileage, too.
M.P.
Give those roundhead ****s a few extra shots from me M.P.
Phillip, Lord North was the Boris Johnson of the 18th century - being useless doesn't mean he wasn't a tyrant, just an incompetent one.
-sean
M.P. - MY car's a 16 year old "Clio" - now there's a macho name! Last year it was letting in water - so I was putting cat litter behind the front seats!
Sean - Unfortunately, Bono will never offer to resign 3 times - he's an egomaniac, who thinks he's Churchill !
Phillip
I mean Bojo - not Bono! Damn autocorrect!
Hey Phil! I just googled "Clio" and apparently, in Greek mythology, she is the muse of historians.
I'm not even gonna pretend that I knew that beforehand.
But perhaps all of us here should take a moment to honor this Clio, history buffs as we all are.
May she continue to inspire us!
Don't feel to bad about your car, Phil. Remember Neil Young's album "Rust Never Sleeps"?
I think of that every time I look at my car.
The way it's going, at some point it's gonna nothing more than four tires, an engine and a steering wheel.
I'm gonna look like Fred Flintstone, riding around in that thing.
M.P.
M.P. - Interesting! I never knew that, either. A muse of historians - I'll drive into town, with a new swagger, now! Previously, Amanda Barrie ("Carry on Cleo") was springing to mind! I've just looked up your Chevy Cavalier. Some of the earlier models look like the UK's Vauxhall Cavalier, from the late 70s/early-mid 80s. They were supposed to be quite good cars (but compared to British Leyland cars, anything would...), except, like you say, notorious for rust!
Phillip
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