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The 1980s had never been more 1980s than they were in July of the year made famous by George Orwell.
Why, one merely had to visit a cinema to see that, with the month unleashing the release of such films as The Last Starfighter, The Muppets Take Manhattan, Electric Dreams, The NeverEnding Story and Purple Rain.
I think the only one of those I've ever seen is The Last Starfighter. Therefore, my opinion about the merits of them all is not only irrelevant but non-existent.
I could claim to have encyclopedic knowledge of the contents of this one but I know nothing.
However, the internet leads me to believe it features tales with such titles as High No One and The Djinn. The latter of which being drawn by Steve Ditko.
The tale inside is drawn by Bo Hampton and it would seem that, plotwise, a sorcerer called Zohar is out to resurrect Marc Spector's father.
Whether that's a good thing or a band thing for our nocturnal nobbler of nefarious ne'er-do-wells, I'm not altogether sure.
Then again, it's not that solo, from the Thing's point of view, because the Human Torch is also in it.
But there's a second tale in this issue.
And that stars Daredevil who's involved in a yarn its creators have dubbed Crimson Ash.
And I can tell you nothing about it, other than it's brought to us by Doug Moench and Paul Gulacy and that this issue's instalment bears the name Phase 1 Phaedra.
Dr Doom, meanwhile, is still working on whatever scheme he has in mind, while Thor and the Enchantress head off together for a chat.
It's practically the law of the jungle that there always has to be a Tarzan comic out there somewhere.
And so it is that we're treated to the launch of a brand new limited series dedicated to the wildest posh bloke of them all.
It seems to be an origin story for our hero and would also appear to be reprinted from 1983's Marvel Super Special #29.
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28 comments:
I don’t recall much about the actual story-line of that Thing tale by Barry Smith, I just remember thinking it was fun and entertaining (if rather ‘slight’) and being VERY impressed by the art. He’d long since moved beyond his early ‘Kirby-heavy’ stylistics, but his version of Ben Grimm here felt ‘just right’ to me — fairly ‘Kirby-ish’ without looking like a slavish imitation (and never once resorting to swipes).
It’s a trick very few people could really pull off. I was never a huge fan of Byrne’s FF run, but I always thought his version of The Thing looked really good, in a subtly Kirby-esque way. Believe it or not, Rich Buckler also drew an excellent “Kirby Style” Thing by channeling Kirby and not directly swiping existing Kirby images (near as I could tell).
b.t.
B.T. I agree with you about Buckler. For Charlie he was a very important bridge between 1960s and 1970s Marvel, gently weaning us of Kirby and deflecting the reality thet Kirby had become a parody of himself just ad Michelangelo had 425 years earlier.
Purple Rain- it was OK. Glad I saw it. But Prince’s high school friend Morris Day (and the Time) stole the show in terms of dance action.
I’ve still never seen Electric Dreams (love the song), Never-Ending Story (do not love the song) or Muppets Take Manhattan. I remember thinking back then and into the 90s that it was odd the Muppets were still about when they seemed so 70s-specific to me. That’s faded away now as they’ve become an ever-present undead franchise in the decades since.
I saw Purple Rain once on TV in about 1989 and that was enough for me; huge fan of the soundtrack though… except the title song which I find really boring.
And it’s a measure of how distracted by other things I was in 1984 - having just turned 13 - that I didn’t see The Last Starfighter. Only got around to it a few years ago. I’d spent my childhood watching any old SF cobblers, but suddenly everything had changed.
I haven’t read any of those comics though I have that MoonKnight story sitting unread inside an Epic Collection from a couple of years ago that I bought for obvious reasons.
I watched The Never Ending Story for the first time a couple of years ago (on BBC iPlayer) but I can't say it was very memorable as I've already forgotten what happens in it. I do remember the theme-song by Limahl though which reached #4 in the UK and unlike Matthew I thought it was quite catchy.
The never ending storrreeeee
ah ah ah
ah ah ah
ah ah ah...
Shocking news about Trump, wasn't it - shocking that he's still breathing I mean.
Assasination is a game of inches.
Apparently Crooked Joe Biden and his crime family organised the assassination attempt on Trump! Considering Biden somehow managed to steal an entire election you'd think he could hire a decent hitman :D
Oh come on, Colin - get real. Clearly it was a false flag operation: set up a patsy on the roof with blanks, to be taken out by a second shooter in the security detail while Trump breaks the blood capsule behind his ear when he hears the shots.
Don't you know how these things work?
Steve, the only one of those films I've seen is Purple Rain. Its ok for what it is, but as I think I might have mentioned when it came up here once before in the 2000AD posts, I prefer the 21st century north African remake, Akounak Tedalat Taha Tazoughai (which translates as Rain The Colour Blue With Some Red In It, because there isn't a Tamashek word for purple) -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-pk03sm9oo
Agree with Matthew about the original, that its the soundtrack thats the thing. But not about the title track, which I like well enough. Maybe I just have more of a tolerance for guitar histrionics.
Also agree with b.t. about Barry Windsor-Smith's Thing (and Byrne's, but not Buckler's).
The fairly light story was a real surprise, coming not too long after Barry's return to comics with the quite different 'The Beguiling' in Epic, but it was great. Pretty sure it was the first time Marvel Fanfare actually published a story that lived up to the title's hype, as opposed to just running old inventory stuff maybe tarted up with inks by Craig Russell or whoever.
The only other time they actually published something special that I can recall was that Dr Strange story by Walt Simonson and Dave Gibbons,a few years later.
-sean
Pedants Corner -
Steve, Mike's World of Comics also gives Marvel Super Special #29 a July '84 cover date. Not sure how the site comes up with one of those when a publication doesn't actually have a date on the cover... but its also listed as having an on-sale date in late March '84, just a couple of weeks before that Tarzan #1.
Which makes a lot more sense to me than some time in '83 as a. the comic book 'reprints' of Super Special material appeared roughly around the same time, and b. that Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan flick with the fella from Highlander came out in March '84.
Now, I'm fairly sure the comic wasn't an adaptation of the film, but as the other dual publication magazine/comics were film adaptations - and Super Special #29 had a cover blurb saying 'featuring the Life and Legend of Lord Greystoke' - it seems reasonable to assume it was an attempt to cash in on it.
-sean
I saw THE LAST STARFIGHTER at the theatre. I believe it was the first movie to feature CG spaceships, and I remember being somewhat impressed that the special effects looked pretty decent. And I thought Catherine Mary Stewart was very very pretty. That’s about it.
Agree with Matthew 100% on PURPLE RAIN — movie, meh — soundtrack, zowie — title song, snore.
b.t.
Among these cinematic selections, I saw "Muppets", "Neverending Story" and "Purple Rain". All of them brought pleasure to this viewer; especially "Story" (big Billy Crystal fan). And in synch with the consensus here, "Purple Rain" the film was pretty good while the album was Truly Epic.
That issue of Marvel Fanfare may rank as one of the best issues of the series. The sharp cover and story art by Barry were standout. But the story was what really nailed it for me: yes, a lightweight fun tale of practical jokes between Ben and Johnny. One of those little character-focused gems, with a lot of humor (the sraw whiskers were hilarious). I'm always a sucker for the occasional lighthearted human interest tale, rather than just another slugfest with Victor Von Doom. Kind of hearkens back to what originally made Marvel comics so memorable- the portrayal of far fetched characters with familar human traits and personalities...
I haven't seen The Last Starfighter, or read the Marvel version in Super Special #31/Last Starfighter #s1-2.
And while checking up which issue that was, I see the film adapted in Super Special #32 was Muppets Take Manhattan...
-sean
Am I the only person here who read Six From Sirius? Kinda surprised that after quite a bit of discussion on Master of Kung Fu and Paul Gulacy round these parts recently, no-one - not even b.t. - has mentioned it.
One of a number of disappointments by 70s-types in the early 80s direct market (see also: Sabre, Void Indigo, Dreadstar... and don't get me started on Ms Mystic and Skate Man).
Probably Gulacy's best work - nice, if a bit stiff - but Moench's writing was 80s McGregor level awful though.
-sean
I read Six from Sirius ( and the follow up) Sean. I really enjoyed both mini series even although they may not have had the most complex storyline they were easy to follow . I 've always been a fan ofGulacys art and loved his work here but I can understand your "stiff" art comment Apart from this comic the only other book I bought was Marvel Fanfare with that fun Thing and Johnny Storm strip by the excellent BWS.
To me, Buckler's Thing brings to mind the 1979 UK Summer Special punch up, in which the Thing & the Hulk swapped minds. Okay, but not my fave. My top Thing art would be John Buscema, a la The Complete Fantastic Four Weekly # 6 cover (Miracle Man etc) & Perez, a la MTIO the Thing & the Stingray. Byrne, whilst reasonable, comes below those two.
I have disambiguation problems relating to genre films' titles. Tne Neverending Story, Labyrinth, Legend, the Dark Crystal, etc - I remember distinct scenes, but forget to which title those scenes belong!
When The Last Starfighter was mentioned, I first thought of Battle Beyond the Stars(?), with Robert Vaughan. But...I remember now, The Last Starfighter had a teenage gamer as 'the Chosen One'. It got shown over Christmas holidays (?) perhaps. What stuck in my mind is that, despite being sci-fi, The Last Starfighter used a horror trope. Specifically, the Lewton bus/jump scare technique. Near the beginning, a suspenseful scene, with a giant space ship seemingly cruising by, revealed itself to be something innocuous & down to earth - before the real sci-fi stuff got started.
My favourite Prince song was 'I could Never Take the Place of Your Man', with some kind of terrific guitar riff. It was played a lot at the time, but now seems almost completely forgotten. Prince's other songs were okay, but that was the standout.
A comic a few months past, on SDC, had a pic quite similar to the Six From Sirius helmet reflection - but I'll be damned if I remember what it was! Dreadstar didn't live up to my expectations, either.
Phillip
sean, I did buy the Moench / Gulacy SIX FROM SIRIUS limited series. There was a second series of that, wasn’t there? Pretty sure I bought that one too. Also, their Cyberpunkish SLASH MARAUD mini-series from DC, a few of their various Batman serials in LEGENDS OF THE DARK KNIGHT, their 3-part b/w horror serial ‘Blood and Black Satin’ in EERIE, their ‘Sexy Deathlok’ dystopian cyborg shoot-em-up series ‘Coldblood’ in MARVEL COMICS PRESENTS, their 3-issue James Bond series from Dark Horse, and other assorted titles. I didn’t think any of those were as enjoyable as the best of their work on MASTER OF KUNG FU, I’m sorry to say.
b.t.
Oh, and since you brought it up, I could never get into Starlin’s Dreadstar stuff either. After WARLOCK, his ‘Darklon’ series in EERIE, that one Hulk story inked by Nino, and maybe that Batman two-parter in BATMAN FAMILY inked by Craig Russell, his figures got stiffer, his layouts more pedestrian, etc. I preferred his work when it was ‘turned up to Eleven’, 24/7.
b.t.
Philip -
'I Could Never Take The Place Of Your Man' was a single off 'Sign 'O' The Times' in late summer / Autumn 1987.
It was the 5th single, so it would have gotten some airplay but I can see why it wouldn't have generated as much excitement as, say, the first couple of singles off the album. Most fans would have heard it by then, and it didn't even have a new 12" mix to listen to [though there's a Shep Pettibone remix of 'Hot Thing' on the B-side].
It is - like the entire album - excellent, though.
Phil-
You seem to be a contemporary of mine, and a fan of cinema.
From that period, at least.
What did you think of Excalibur?
Sometimes I think I'm the only guy that remembers that movie.
M.P.
Matthew - Thanks for the clarification. Shows my memory's playing tricks on me, again. I 'remember' listening to ICNTTPOYM on the radio during 'O'-level art (mid-80s) - but - in reality - I can't have done, it coming out later!
Phillip
Aha!
The SOTT album definitely came out before or around about the time of exams in Spring / early Summer 1987. I definitely had a tape of it when I was revising for my O-levels.
They must have been playing it off the album: it was a banger, and people were excited about the album generally.
M.P. - Yes, I think you and I are closest in age! I never saw Excalibur at the cinema, but, nevertheless, memories of it give me a chuckle! My dad had bought a Betamax video recorder, and my brother & myself, knowing Excalibur was being shown late on tv (we must have been about 12 or 13), put a tape in, and set it on a record, before going to bed (a school night.) In the morning, after trying to record Excalibur, we were bitterly disappointed, having recorded very little. My mother declared that she'd turned the video recorded off, saying: "It said 'stop', so I pressed it!" As an adult, I now realize my mother must have decided Excalibur wasn't suitable for kids our age, so stopped the video recorder, for that reason! (Probably Uther Pendragon having his wicked way with Igraine!) As I said at the top, reminiscing, this gives me a chuckle (but at the time I was majorly disappointed!) I ought to watch the film again, sometime, to compare my adult reaction!
Phillip
By far the best Arthurian film is Monty Python and the Holy Grail.
b.t., I find Paul Gulacy's work on most of MOKF - which I'd liked a lot as a kid - disappointing in retrospect. The figure proportions were all over the place... but he seemed to have that under control by the end of his run, and did his best stuff in the period after that.
The Eerie stories - iirc he did some shorts with Dauntless Don, as well as 'Blood On Black Satin' - and that Black Widow one he did for Marvel Preview were great. I reckon the way he used greyscale washes in the b&w mags suited his approach much better than standard comic book linework.
And then you get Six From Sirius, which was the best thing he ever did. Mainly because of his fantastic use of colour - garish (in a good way) with all those bright greens and whatnot, yet somehow also subtly done. Its a shame it wasn't published at the magazine size it was obviously designed for (I believe it was originally planned for the Epic mag).
Doug Moench on the other hand - yeah, MOKF might be his best work. But thats kind of by default, because I'm hard pressed to think of anything else he did that I really liked.
Aztec Ace maybe? Which came out around the same time as Six From Sirius, so that just goes to show how inconsistent those old skool writers could be.
-sean
*all those bright greens, pinks and whatnot
Gareth Southgate resigns as England manager! Vaughan Gething has also resigned as First-Minister of Wales so, with the exception of Sadiq Khan in London, all of Britain's ethnic minority leaders have now gone in only a couple of months following Humza Yousaf in Scotland and Rishi Sunak.
Poor Gareth Southgate - it would have been "Arise Sir Gareth" if things had gone differently!
There's still an ethnic minority First Minister in the six counties, Colin.
The Irish are practically taking over the place! (;
-sean
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