April 12th, 1975 - Marvel UK, 50 years ago this week.

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

***

As we move through April, the winter recedes behind us and the days grow warmer.

But they were really getting warmer in BBC Two's Midnight Movie of April 12th, 1975.

That's because it was Night of the Big Heat. The film in which Peter Cushing and Christoper Lee are stuck on an a island that keeps getting hotter and hotter and it's all the fault of aliens!

But what of the UK's singles chart? Was that too hotting up?

I shall leave that judgement to the minds of others but what I can say is its Number One slot was still being held by the Bay City Rollers' Bye Bye Baby.

Meanwhile, the pinnacle of the accompanying LP chart was retained by Tom Jones with his 20 Greatest Hits.

Those not familiar with the UK music scene often ask me if it's rare for Tom to top the charts and I, of course, assure them that it's not unusual.

Bye Bye Baby possessed, I'm sure, its charms but songs I approved of more on that week's Hit Parade were:

Fox on The Run - the Sweet

Love Me Love My Dog - Peter Shelley

I Can Do It - Rubettes

Honey - Bobby Goldsboro

Only You Can - Fox

Hurt So Good - Susan Cadogan

Dreamer - Supertramp

and

Lovin' You - Minnie Riperton.

Interesting to see two foxes and a dog on that list. Clearly, it was a time of high canine activity.

Should you wish to scrutinise, in more detail, the issues raised by this post, that week's UK singles chart can be found right here.

While its adjoining album chart dwells within.

Do New York skyscrapers still have those water towers on top of them? They should stick one on top of the Shard. It'd add a certain something to it.

That aside, I think we can assume this issue sees the return of Dr Octopus and I do believe it's the one in which the tentacular terror decides to hijack a plane containing a bunch of Chinese diplomats.

Nowhere near an airport, Subby and Iron Man are still battling each other but Namor abandons the scrap when he realises that punching Warlord Krang should be more of a priority in his life.

And it's serious trouble for Thor - because Loki's stolen his hammer.

And we all knows what that means.

It means we're going to have to read the adventures of Don Blake, from now on!

And his first adventure is that Sif is injured and only his surgical skills can save her!

I do detect we're about to be treated to the climax of the Hulk's encounter with Havok and Polaris!

Daredevil's still battling the Beetle at the Montreal Expo.

And Reed Richards continues to be trapped in the Negative Zone, in danger of having an encounter with Blastaar, while Triton endeavours to get the pliable physicist back to Earth.

An historic moment hits us in the face, as the Vision makes his Marvel UK debut, meaning the company will no longer have to redraw him as Thor on their front covers.

I don't know much about this week's Iron Fist but I do know he's up against the Daughters of the Death-Goddess.

I suspect that involves worshippers of Kali.

And I do believe the ever-mysterious Ninja's present and starting to lose his rag with our hero. It can surely only be a matter of time before blows are struck.

Lastly, Dr Strange has entered the Dream Dimension, in a bid to rescue Eternity from Nightmare but the crafty villain only goes and turns the Eye of Agamotto against the Sorcerer Supreme.

Earl Norem supplies a cover that somewhat clashes with the book's masthead and our main tale concerns an actor who's played Dracula in so many films that he starts to think he is Dracula.

Unfortunately for him, that's when the real lord of the vampires turns up.

Elsewhere, Jack Russell decides its a good idea to hide out in a cave - but then discovers he's not the first to have had that idea, upon discovering the skeleton of a warlock who summoned a demon to that place many years ago.

I have a feeling that means that demon is going to show up at any moment.

Frankenstein's Monster, meanwhile, is about to find himself confronted by a multi-faceted clone created in a lab accident.

Apeslayer's still slapping those monkeys around and, against all odds, he's done such a good job of surviving an encounter with a group of mutant sirens that he and Mala have decided it's time to hijack a boat.

That's followed by a Ron Goulart/Win Mortimer adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson's Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde.

Conan turns up in Shadizar and promptly meets a woman called Jenna who's then abducted by religious fanatics and taken to be sacrificed to a giant bat!

But here's an oddity. The front cover insists this week's backup strip involves Kull vs Thulsa Doom but the Grand Comics Database insists it involves Ka-Zar and Zabu and tells their origin story.

That's a rather unhappy-looking monster the Surfer's tangling with there.

Then again, I'd be unhappy if I had to live in Mephisto's Hellish realm.

Needless to say, that diabolical fiend's still trying to get the Surfer to submit to his will.

And the X-Men are still trying to get the Blob to submit to their will by getting him to join their merry band.

Forty years ago today - April 1985.

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

***

These days, it often feels like the world is trapped in an endless cycle of turmoil.

So, let us look at the activities of a bunch of people who could, if they existed, make it even worse.

It would seem Odin's been killed in the epic battle with Surtur but Loki's not so sure he's dead.

And neither is Thor.

Hela, on the other hand, is convinced he's as brown bread as a sack of Hovis and has showed up, all ready and eager to claim his soul.

To be honest, if I were her, I wouldn't want him anywhere near my kingdom; what with his tantrums. I'd go out of my way to make sure his soul never got within a billion miles of it.

Needless to say, Thor's not having any of that kind of thing and decides to have a fight with her.

Meanwhile, the hordes of Asgard are stranded on Earth, thanks to the Rainbow Bridge having been shattered.

Speaking of such things, because of a half-wit exorcist, Reed and Sue are now trapped in Hell and prisoners of Mephisto who wastes no opportunity to torture them.

Fortunately, Dr Strange is on hand to help the duo.

And so is their son who turns out to be the key to defeating the diabolical dolt.

Meanwhile, the ever-loving Thing is back on Earth.

And is brought well and truly down to to Earth when he discovers Alicia's now dating the quite-a-lot-loving Human Torch!

Will Ben strike back by revenge-dating Dorrie Evans?

Only future episodes will tell.

Can it be?

The X-Men having to battle for their lives against the normally friendly Warlock?

No. It can't. 

In fact, they're having to battle his dad, the not-at-all-friendly Magus.

Meanwhile, Prof X gets beaten up by a gang of mutant-hating protesters.

I still don't have a clue what the relationship is between Adam Warlock and the Magus and the X-Men's Warlock and Magus. I'm assuming there's some sort of link but just what it is escapes me.

But what madness awaits us?

Spider-Man, back in the alien symbiote costume that can only mean he and humanity nought but ill will?

No. It turns out he's wearing a replica of it, made by the Black Cat, due to his regular outfit being too wet to wear with comfort.

That aside, our hero spends the issue being tormented by memories of Gwen Stacy.

The sharp-eyed will recognise, from the cover, that we're encountering the return of Xeron the star-slayer.

And not only that. Klaatu and Captain Cybor are also back.

It turns out that not one of them died in the story in which we first encountered them, which does somewhat rob that tale of its almost poetic beauty and renders it fairly toothless.

Anyway, Cybor and Xeron are once more in pursuit of Klaatu and, yet again, they recruit the Hulk to their cause.

At least the Abomination hasn't showed up or I might be forced to suspect this is just a lazy re-tread of the original tale.

Now there's trouble. Not only has Cap's shield been stolen, an analysis of it has been used to create a suit of armour from the same metal.

This is due to the abduction of the scientist who created that shield and was also the man who invented adamantium.

With a suit made of that, stopping the villain inside it will be surely impossible.

Not at all. In fact, it'll be super-easy. Barely an inconvenience.

Ring the alarm bells. The Vision's taken over all the world's computers. Which, presumably, includes the one I'm writing this post with!

I'm struggling to remember what happens after that but I think the Avengers turn up and ask him to stop being in control of all the world's computers.

And so he does.

The Black Widow's back - and so is Barry Smith.

At least, on the front cover.

Inside, Bazzer's nowhere to be seen.

But, then, nothing much is to be seen, as a villain called the Cossack's blinded the whole of New York, including the Black Widow and even the Gael!

Needless to say, this isn't going to stop Daredevil but it is amazing how many times villains in his stories have had devices for sending people blind.

Not for the first time, Conan stumbles across a magic sword.

But, for once, it's not an evil one and it guides him to a trapped wizard who needs his help.

Remember that kid who wanted to be Dr Octopus and built himself a set of metal arms?

Well, now he's decided he wants to be Spider-Man and still has a set of metal arms.

Needless to say, this gets him into all kinds of trouble.

And it's trouble only the real Spider-Man can get him out of.

Elsewhere, Liz Allan gives birth.

It's conundrum central. Tony Stark's vowed never to become Iron Man again - due to that role having played a large part in him becoming an alcoholic - but when Hawkeye, Tigra and the woman who's definitely not a Black Canary knock-off have to fight Dr Demonicus's giant monster, how can he refuse to don the suit again in order to stop a foe they lack the brute force to thwart?

The internet informs me the monster in this story is actually Godzilla but Marvel had to change his appearance, due to no longer having the licence to use him.

The Marvel Lucky Bag - April 1975.

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

***

Films of distinction were, perhaps, notable by their absence from the cinemas of the world in April 1975 but there were at least three movies I've heard of that were unleashed that month.

Those movies were Death Race 2000, Monty Python and the Holy Grail and Russ Meyer's Supervixens.

I must confess to only having seen the first two of those and can declare that I enjoy them both equally. If I'd ever seen Supervixens, I'm sure I'd have enjoyed that one, as well.

But it's the start of a saga I'm sure we'll never forget, when the Sons of the Serpent return to launch chaos and spite upon the streets of New York.

But not before the Valkyrie gets to wander those streets and see for herself the living conditions of that city's poor.

And it's another comic some of us will never forget, as Moses Magnum makes his first appearance and prompts Spider-Man and the Punisher to team up in response to his habit of abducting people from the back alleys of America and conducting illegal gas experiments on them.

In addition to that, we encounter a reprint of Doctor Strange #179 in which the spidester and the surgeon combine to bring down Xandu and his Wand of Watoomb.

A dramatic Jim Starlin cover heralds an issue in which something or other happens along the way to our hero encountering the Magus.

I do believe this month sees the introduction of Pip the troll.

A classic cover by John Buscema and Boris Vallejo tells us we're about to open an adaptation of Robert E Howard's A Witch Shall Be Born.

That's thrilling enough but even more exciting than that, I'm sure, is a three-page look at trade routes in the Hyborian Age followed by five pages of drawings of our hero by Bob Kline.

I've no idea who Billy Jack is but it seems he was the subject of a 1971 movie and, thus, he makes the cover, despite only having nine pages devoted to him inside the mag.

I am, of course, assuming he's the same Billy Jack as the one in the movie.

Shang-Chi, meanwhile, stars in A Different Lesson In Blood Unchanged!

And the Sons of the Tiger headline Gladiators in the Crypt of Tomorrow.

History is made, as Marvel launches its adaptation of the second apes movie, as brought to us by Doug Moench and Alfredo Alcala.

And there's an interview with a director of the TV series, a profile of Natalie Trundy and a review of a paperback adaptation of two episodes of that TV show.

It's Morbin' Time, as the living vampire tries to survive a tale called A Taste of Crimson Life.

We also encounter chillers with such names as A House of Pleasure, The House of Death and Blindspot!

Regular fire meets Hellfire - not to mention Soul-Fire - when the Human Torch bumps into the Son of Satan.

Apparently, it all leads to Daimon Hellstrom helping Johnny exorcise a demon that's possessed Wyatt Wingfoot's almost super-humanly unlucky tribe.

April 5th, 1975 - Marvel UK, 50 years ago this week.

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

***

Comedy rocked our world, this week in 1975, when it saw Monty Python and the Holy Grail released in UK cinemas.

In the world of sport, Manchester United clinched promotion to the First Division, just one season after having been relegated from it.

You'd never know it from that cover but this issue features the second half of the tale in which our hero gets the Prowler to pretend to be him, so that Peter Parker and Spider-Man can be seen in the same place at the same time by the same people and, thus, dispel his friends' suspicion that Spider-Man and Peter are in reality the same person.

This is, of course, in the wake of Peter having, last week, declared himself to be Spider-Man.

But, despite that cover, I can confirm that, at no point in this tale is Gwen Stacy in any kind of danger.

Elsewhere, Iron Man's getting a good thumping from the Sub-Mariner. And, so, he locks himself in a room to buy himself time to recharge his batteries.

Meanwhile, feeling a bit rundown himself, Subby takes a dip in the ocean, in order to recharge his own batteries.

In no need of recharging any batteries at all is Thor, who's in Karnilla's house and having yet another punch-up with Ulik.

Gwen Stacy may be in no danger but Shalla-Bal certainly is.

And that's because it's time for Marvel UK to publish my favourite Silver Surfer story of them all, as the menacing Mephisto makes his diabolical debut and attempts to tempt the pewter powerhouse.

The X-Men, meanwhile, are having their first clash with the Blob who they try to recruit to their ranks and, when he spurns their offer, they wipe his memories.

Seems a bit extreme of them.

Are they sure they're the good guys?

I've no idea what's going on on this cover but it certainly looks striking.

Inside, his fight with Batroc successfully concluded, Iron Fist now has his first encounter with a woman called Misty Knight.

I do believe the Avengers conclude their run-in with the Scarlet Centurion and successfully put right the timeline that had seen them become a menace to humanity.

And Dr Strange must defeat a Nightmare who's made a terrific job of ruining everyone's New Year celebrations.

And what's this? More thrills from Marvel's greatest foiler of simians?

Too right it is!

This week, we discover yet more of his origin, as we see just how he came to be a gladiator in the apes' games and just how he escaped to become their greatest nemesis.

After that, there's even more cause for celebration because we encounter the UK debut of the Guardians of the Galaxy, as a bunch of highly modified humans - and Yondu - rise up to fight the rule of the evil alien Badoon.

And, finally, we blunder upon Lee and Ditko's The Secret of the Black Planet.

That's the one in which an escaped convict on another world decides to escape in a conveniently-placed rocket ship.

Only for it to turn out to be a living creature that he's only just gone and climbed into the mouth of!

I do believe this is the one in which the Hulk lifts up an entire cliff in one of the most memorable comic book panels of my childhood.

He is, of course, doing this because he's in conflict with Havok over Lorna Dane who he's mistaken for Jarella.

And Daredevil's still in Canada and fighting a Beetle who's determined to unmask him, thanks to the machinations of Stan Lee and Gene Colan.

Meanwhile, Reed Richards continues to be trapped in the Negative Zone and on collision course with a planet that's going to disintegrate him on contact.

Can no one save him?

I have a suspicion a certain aquatic Inhuman may be able to do just that.

And I do believe this may be the story which sees the finger-blasting debut of none other than Blastaar himself.

In a twist we never saw coming, the lord of vampires travels to America and has the misfortune to feed on a man who's a drug addict. Does this mean Dracula will now also become a drug addict?

Only time - and the rest of this story - will tell.

The werewolf by night continues to be on show in a carnival. Needless to say, fighting's broken out.

And, like Dracula, Frankenstein's Monster is in modern day New York.

But it's not drug addicts he has to worry about. No, he has to worry about street gangs!

It's the first Conan story I ever read, as Zukala and his transformational daughter make their first appearances, and our belligerent heads off to their castle to tackle them, having been promised a big fat reward by the local peasants.

Meanwhile, in the backup strip, I'm assured that Kull's arrogance sees the release of an ancient menace he's barely able to thwart.

Fifty years ago today - April 1975.

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

***

British Summer Time's arrived!

And that means we've had to fling ourselves one hour into the future.

But now let us fling ourselves fifty years and one hour into the past!

After what feels like centuries, the Celestial Madonna Saga still rumbles along.

And, this time, we discover the senses-shattering truth of the origin of the Vision - and how it ties in with the disappearance of the first Human Torch!

Isn't this the flashback tale that reveals how Conan got his cherry popped by a mysterious woman in a log cabin?

And she turned out to be a wolf-fixated witch?

Then again, maybe I'm just imagining that story ever existed.

And maybe Conan's just imagining it ever happened.

I don't think I've read this one but I take it Sharon Carter's still not dead by this point?

Clearly, someone's been to the same tailor as Kraven.

More importantly, Matt Murdock gets the Black Widow to attend a party thrown by Foggy Nelson.

And, with the sort of luck that only people who hang around with Foggy Nelson can know, they're promptly attacked by Hydra and El Jaguar!

I recall nothing of what occurs in this one but, judging by that cover, it's all kicking-off as the brand new Doomsman makes his presence felt.

Much as I love this era of the Hulk, I can't claim the Devastator's one of Marvel's greatest villains.

In fact, so far away is he from being one of Marvel's greatest villains that I remember nothing about him, other than that he's Russian.

And that he's dead by the end of the issue.

Speaking of not being Marvel's greatest villain, here comes the Cyclone, the only super-menace ever to be defeated by an electric fan.

Still, it does give Spidey, JJJ and Joe Robertson a chance to visit France for reasons I don't recall.

Nope. I have no idea at all as to what happens in this one.

I'm assuming Thor and Loki have a fight.

I would also assume that Firelord puts in an appearance.

That's Marvel's main superstars. more or less, dealt with but we should never forget they aren't the only people we'll encounter should we enter our local vendor of quality reading matter.

We'll also encounter the denizens of DC.

Therefore, for contrast and comparison, let us see what a random sampling of that company's product bearing the same cover date looks like.

Limited Collectors' Edition #C-35 brings us the original Captain Marvel - and a cover of somewhat doubtful aesthetic appeal.

But, inside, we discover 68 pages and a string of yarns reprinted from the 1940s and '50s.

Not to mention such features as Shazam! The World's Mightiest Family, Shazam! Puzzle Page, How to Draw Cap's Friends and Foes, Shazam! On Television!! and the obligatory table-top diorama these projects always seem to include.

That cover can only mean one thing.

We're about to encounter a reprint of the whole of 1942's Wonder Woman #1.

Brace yourself, then, for action, as the amazing Amazon bondages her way through a string of uplifting adventures, including the origin story in which she first meets Steve Trevor.

We also meet a 4-page biography of Florence Nightingale, A Message from Phil, Sweet Adeline, The Greatest Feat of Daring in Human History!, Little Oscar's First Air Raid - and an ad encouraging America's children to buy at least one 10-cent Savings Stamp each week, in aid of the war effort.

It's always exciting when a new comic hits our spinner racks and that's exactly what happens with the launch of 1st Issue Special.

And its debut appearance stars none other than Atlas himself.

Not that I know anything beyond that, other than that it's written and drawn by Jack Kirby.

The gravely grim ghost of retribution is back.

But he's not drawn by Jim Aparo!

He's drawn by Ernie Chua, with Aparo on inks.

And Jim Corrigan's alter-ego must halt the lunatic practices of a museum curator who has people delivered to his workplace where he plans to make an exhibition of them.

Following that, we find the launch of a Seven Soldiers of Victory series which sees a septet of Golden Age heroes on a mission to do something or other in a tale that I think was written in the 1940s but never drawn and published until now.

What's this?

A mystery person trying to join the Justice League?

One who appears to have wings?

And has already been a member?

Who can it be?

Well, obviously, it's Hawkman!

And he re-enters the mix when the gang help him thwart the plans of the Equalizer.

And I don't mean Edward Woodward.

I mean an interplanetary villain who's unleashed a plague on the people of Thanagar. One which makes them all equal in physical and mental capabilities.

And then the crafty crook does the same with the JLA!

In our brand new opening tale, the dark-night detective must do something about The Scarecrow's Trail of Fear!

Then, we receive reprints of The Round-Robin Death Threats and Where There's a Will-- There's a Slay!

But, also, there are various short features of interest to the dedicated Batfan, including one about strange old laws.

It's  a comic that only a mad thing wouldn't want, when the Legion prepares to give a peace negotiator a big trophy.

But, before it can happen, Superboy, Mon-El, and Ultra Boy are attacked by their parents! 

It can only be the work of our heroes' crime-packed counterparts the Legion of Super-Villains!

And, when it comes to reprints, the publication offers us the always endearing Lana Lang's Superboy Identity Detection Kit! and The Evil Hand of the Luck Lords!

The horror comic that never seems to take itself too seriously gives us Magic by Moonlight Only..., Satan's Revenge and The Hanging Man. All narrated by Eve.

Off the top of my head, I only recall the cover story which I think involves a battle of witches/sorcerers within the confines of a pharmacy and is drawn by Ruben Yandoc.

This month, the world's spookiest dispenser of tales of conflict gets 64 pages.

And it uses those pages to deliver such nightmares as Escape, The Moon Is the Murderer, The 13th Man, The Pool..., Monsieur Gravedigger, Bloody Halloween, The Day after Doomsday, Colonel Clown Isn't Laughing Anymore!, Death-Gram and The Deadly Seeds.

Not all of which are reprints.