Fifty years ago today - October 1973.

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

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Plunge with me into the primordial soup that is the 1970s.

Man-Wolf is still causing trouble - and flashbacks - for our hero. He's out to get J Jonah Jameson and - judging by that cover - out to get his own girlfriend, as well. Is there no stopping the yellow-clad maniac?

I believe this is the first issue of Amazing Spider-Man Ross Andru ever drew. As Andru was my favourite Spider-Man artist when I was a lad, I regard this as no bad thing.

The Avengers/Defenders Evil Eye saga gets into full swing when the Silver Surfer takes on the Vision and Scarlet Witch.

I don't believe I've ever read this one and, so, my ignorance is total. However, my eagle eyes tell me mummies may be involved.

And the internet tells me the Yellow Claw is too!

John Romita does a mammoth amount of reworking to a Gil Kane cover. Much as I love the Jazzy one, I can't help feeling his Conan doesn't look anything like barbaric enough.

As for the insides, I do believe the heroic Hyborean helps the Turanian army fight someone called the Hill-Men.

And then he has to do battle with his own shadow!

Good to see Daredevil's radar sense being as much use as a stainless steel tennis ball.

As for the book's contents, I've no recollection of ever having read this yarn but it seems someone called The Man sends Kraven to kill Daredevil, causing the jungle jeopardising bounder to gatecrash a party at the home of the senior partner in Matt's law firm.

I just hope The Man's real name isn't Stan.

But, hold on. There's a senior partner in Matt Murdock's law firm? When did that happen?

Hooray! I bought this issue from Sheffield's late lamented Sheaf Market and, thanks to the return of the Miracle Man, the artwork of John Buscema and the presence of Medusa, it's still a comic I love.

The Miracle Man's not only back, he's taken over a local reservation, evicted the inhabitants and is in the process of creating a city from thin air. Can the FF thwart his ghastly plan to do whatever it is he's ghastlyly planning to do?

Well, here's a turn-up for the books. Betty Ross has turned into a super-villain!

That's because MODOK's exposed her to a mighty dose of gamma radiation, transforming her into the Harpy. Blaming the Hulk for her husband's death, she's now on the warpath.

And several flight paths.

Dr Spectrum's back.

Meanwhile, Pepper's distraught about Happy leaving her.

And then she kisses Tony Stark, just as Happy walks into the room!

Oh, those Marvel love triangles.

Mercurio and Thor are still at odds, over a big, talking jewel that's captured Sif and Karnilla.

I do feel "Karnilla" is one of the greatest names in literature. It's a source of great regret to me that I've never met anyone in the real world who bears that name.

Apparently, Mekano lives.

Presumably, Leggo's feeling quite well too.

Stikklebrix is, however, well and truly a goner.

That's Marvel's big hitters accounted for.

But what of the Distinguished Competition?

For comparison's sake, let's see what a random selection of its mags bearing the same cover date is up to.

A flying, green, taloned monster with red hair? Who could resist buying a book with that image on it?

Not me. That's why I bought it when I first encountered it in the summer of 1975.

Inside, we get three tales. All reprints.

In the first, Evans Talbot makes himself immortal but then realises that, in doing so, he's doomed the rest of humanity.

In the second, cartoonist Don Doyle discovers the winged alien he's created has come to life and wants nothing but the destruction of us all.

In the third, Ron Madden's a hero to the Thalar race. Why, then, do they shun him when he returns to their world?

Brace yourself because we're about to be hit in the face by a hundred pages of concentrated super-heroic goodness. 

In our first tale, Superboy hypnotizes himself to think he's just a normal person, in order to fool the Superboy Revenge Squad. This causes Pete Ross to pretend to be him and trick Clark into accidentally performing super feats.

Next, when Lena Thorul learns she's Lex Luthor's sister,  the shock causes her to lose her memory and adopt the identity of a jungle princess, inadvertently using her telepathic powers to control animals.

Next, the Eastingham Institute is awarding a prize to the student who makes the best invention.

Then, Kid Eternity finds himself confronting the awesome villainy of... ...the Beagle!

Then, Lightning Lad loses an arm to the Super-Moby Dick of Space and goes on a mad quest for vengeance.

Then, Mr. Twister's kidnapped all the teenagers from Hatton Corners, causing the formation of the Teen Titans.

And, finally, Professor Tinker creates a formula that transforms Superboy into a giant.

At last, Supergirl and Zatanna team up.

But not before fighting over a boy.

I don't recall too much of what happens in this one, other than that the cover's not a totally accurate representation of what happens inside.

It's more magic from Dave Cockrum, as the Fatal Five show up in 1950s Smallville.

Meanwhile, a Legion of Super-Heroes team also turns up there. Can they thwart the quarrelsome quintet before its bomb rewrites history in a way that means the Legion will never come to exist?

Forget the future. We're travelling to the past where Dracula shows up in 1940s Italy, and Napoleon's ghost shows up in World War One France.

You've heard about it. You've read about it. You might even have talked about it.

But have you ever read it?

I haven't but I do know Plop's making its first appearance - and does so with a string of titter-worthy tales from Sergio Aragonés, Frank Robbins, George Evans, Bernie Wrightson, Basil Wolverton and numerous humorous others.