August 11th, 1976 - 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. 

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It seems like I can't stop talking about Mars, of late.

And that may be because we've reached the 50th anniversary of the week in which Viking 2 entered orbit around the Red Planet.

Back on Earth, the Great Clock of Westminster - often erroneously referred to as Big Ben - suffered internal damage that would cause it to stop running for over nine months!

Also not running - mostly because he'd been caught - was John Stonehouse who, I'm sure you're aware, was the last person to serve as Britain's Postmaster General. More to the point, this was the week in which he was sentenced to seven years in jail for fraud.

And the charts?

Number One on the UK's singles listings was, as previously, Don't Go Breaking My Heart by Elton John and Kiki Dee. While the Beach Boys' 20 Golden Greats retained its position atop the accompanying LP rankings.

Don't Go Breaking My Heart is an amiable enough song but there were other tracks I approved of on that week's Hit Parade.

Among them being:

You Should Be Dancing - the Bee Gees

Back in the USSR - the Beatles

You're My Best Friend - Queen

The Boston Tea Party - the Sensational Alex Harvey Band

Leader of the Pack {1976} - the Shangri-Las

and

Good Vibrations {1976} - the Beach Boys.

Should you wish to investigate, you can encounter that singles chart here.

While its parallel album chart dwells within.

Hooray! It's that one in which the Fantastic Four come up against robot duplicates of all their greatest foes - and of the Mole Man!

To be honest, despite being a non-stop cavalcade of action intended to celebrate the gang's 100th issue, it's not a great tale, as the robots can't fight their way out of a carrier bag and the Mad Thinker and Red Ghost - who are behind it all - somehow manage to blow themselves up!

I suspect the Sub-Mariner tale is the one in which he and the Thing tussle over the Serpent Crown while Betty Dean shows up and bemoans the fact that she's now the horrifically old age of, erm, fortyish.

Not only do we get that mighty drama but Nick Fury's trapped by Hydra when he investigates their boss.

Having been rescued from Hell by the Son of Satan, the Ghost Rider gains a temporary motorbike made from Hellfire but has the problem that, when he reverts to Johnny Blaze, at daybreak, the injuries he's acquired, of late, are likely to kill him.

And Captain America tries to stop the Red Skull's Fourth Sleeper robot as it rampages around America! 

As we can all tell from that cover, Jason, Alexander and friends continue to have a troubling experience in their encounter with the Demons of the Psychedrome.

And I do believe we've reached the end of the yarn in which the Man-Thing and his supporting cast are roped in to act out the life of a dead clown.

Manny, of course, must fight a trio of supernatural beings to protect that clown's soul.

Ka-Zar's entangled in an adventure called Beyond the Vale of Savage Time. An epic of which I have no knowledge, other than that he may have to fight a gorilla - to the death!

And we wrap up the issue with the continued reprinting of Marvel's adaptation of the original Planet of the Apes movie.

It's good news for all fans of twinkle-toed action, because the Tarantula makes his stabby debut.

And does so by hijacking a boat trip our hero and his chums are riding on!

I've always had a soft spot for the Tarantula but this does raise the question of whether there's ever been a good super-villain whose talent is jumping around? The Kangaroo was rubbish. Batroc was rubbish. Leapfrog was rubbish. The Toad was rubbish. Much as I love the Tarantula, he clearly is rubbish. I am starting to spot a pattern here.

Not doing much jumping around is the god of thunder who finally uncovers the secret of Infinity. And it means Odin is going to have to do battle with Odin!

For what feels like the millionth week running, Iron Man's facing the Red Ghost and his Super-Apes.

Then, in a tale I remember well, Morbius and the Thing are removed from this reality, by the Living Eraser. Banished to another dimension, they must help a man called Supremor regain his throne. Presumably because it's a bit duff being called Supremor if you're not supreme.

And Dr Strange is still in big trouble in his struggles with Dracula.

It's a nightmare come true!

It's the week when The Mighty World of Marvel increases its price to 9p!

No wonder the government had to go to the IMF for more money in 1976. They clearly wanted to be able to carry on buying all four of Marvel UK's weeklies!

Meanwhile, it's the fight we all wanted to see; the Vision vs the Super-Skrull.

Although, admittedly, they never quite get round to fighting, because the Vision acts like a big sad quitter and departs the scene but it's all beautifully drawn, Carol Danvers turns out to be the Super-Skrull and Goliath loses his growing powers.

However, before we reach that epic, there's the Hulk to be dealt with when the fist-brained thumper of thugs and monsters has a return bout with Zzzax after Bruce Banner is hired as a janitor, by a lab whose latest experiment accidentally revives the creature!

Conan's strip, meanwhile, gives us a flashback to the barbarian's youthful encounter with a mysterious priestess called Ursla!

And, in Daredevil's strip, Karen Page launches her acting career while Daredevil investigates a troubled TV production. I suspect it can only mean Brother Brimstone is about to put in his first appearance!