The Marvel Lucky Bag - January 1973.

Thanks to Charlie Horse 47 and Killdumpster for their sponsorship of this post, via the magic of Patreon. 

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What was this arriving in your local cinema in January 1973?

It was Last Tango in Paris. A film so controversial that it was guaranteed to make money.

Rather less controversially and, possibly, less profitably, the month also saw the release of Spike Milligan's Adolf Hitler: My Part In His Downfall. The story of a man conscripted into the Royal Artillery regiment at Bexhill-on-Sea during World War II.

I must confess I've seen neither movie and must, therefore, leave it to others to give the final verdict as to which is the finer film.

Marvel launches its take on the monster of Frankenstein, thanks to Gary Friedrich and Mike Ploog.

In it, Robert Walton IV leads an Arctic expedition to retrieve Frankenstein's creature which has been frozen in ice. While he's at it, he takes time off to tell the cabin boy how the monster came to be created.

My memory is that this is a fairly messy story about Subby trying to keep Venus safe from the ill intentions of Ares. And Venus is, somehow, also a schoolteacher called Vicki Starr.

Another new Marvel mag hits the racks.

And, this time, it's Tex Dawson who gets his own book. Which I'm sure is good news, even if I do keep misreading his name as Les Dawson.

In it, we get five Western tales reprinted from various comics in 1956. Interestingly, most of the stories feature work by John Romita.

Neal Adams gives us the cover, and Gene Colan gives us the interiors, when Dracula and Lenore return to 20th Century England.

However, Dracula's plans to kill Rachel are impeded by the deformed son of a nobleman.

War is Hell #1 arrives with a bang, as such tales as Decision at Dawn!, Fokker!, Cavalryman and Helpless! do their best to put us off launching our very own wars.

It may be 1973 but all of the tales within are reprinted from 1957.

And yet another new book is launched upon the world!

Yet again, we're offered a string of 1950s reprints. And these ones treat us to such titles as Midnight on Black Mountain, Where Monsters Dwell, Don't Look! and The Scarecrow.

And yet another new book makes its debut!

However, this time, there are no reprints. It consists mostly of a 64-page photo strip by Stan Lee and Alan Asherman.

From that cover, I'm assuming it's in a humourous vein but have never read it and, so, can offer no commentary upon its success or failure as an artistic venture.