August 25th, 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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I remember being on holiday, this week in 1976, merrily hoovering up comics on the streets of Blackpool, in order to import them to the fair city of Sheffield.

But, when it came to Marvel UK, just what were the comics I was hoovering up?

Good gravy above! It was these precious gems!

Prince Namor once again shows his awesome intellect by teaming up with a super-villain, having totally failed to spot that that super-villain is up to no good.

This time, it's Magneto who has the honour of duping the world's most dupable man.

And, of course, it all leads to war with the surface dwellers!

The week's Nick Fury story reveals that SHIELD Agent John Bronson is secretly the Supreme Hydra! I think we can assume the colonel isn't going to put up with that for long.

Meanwhile, Johnny Blaze accepts an offer to ride in a Las Vegas demolition derby.

Captain America's still battling the Red Skull's Fourth Sleeper which now threatens a military base. However, the star-spangled superstar has a magic tuning fork that can potentially stop the unstoppable machine.

Finally, the Sub-Mariner takes the Helmet of Power back to Atlantis. Whereupon, it transforms into the deadly Serpent Crown!

That's quite a dramatic cover.

I do believe it's by Ron Wilson.

Admittedly, I only know that because the Grand Comics Database tells me it is.

Regardless, in this book, Brutus learns that Malagueña and Gilbert survived his attack.

Jason and Alexander, meanwhile, encounter the mysterious Keeper of the Light!

Far away from that, and in another time period entirely, Ka-Zar's having trouble in the city of Tordon-Na. Sadly, I can be no more specific about it than that.

The Man-Thing, meanwhile, is futilely attacked by Spanish conquistadors, despite being in modern-day Florida.

But, obviously, the highlight of this issue is our encounter with Grottu, King of the Insects, a radiation-mutated giant ant that decides it would be absolutely spiffing to conquer the planet. This is, of course, a Lee/Kirby short-form classic.

Finally, Marvel's adaptation of the original Planet of the Apes movie sees the wounded Taylor being treated in an ape hospital - and coming to the attention of one Dr Zira...

I think we can all surmise that this one in which the Hulk must battle his own shadow.

Or, at least, the alien warlord Kaa masquerading as it. You'd struggle to call this tale a classic but I do have a soft spot for it.

When it comes to the Avengers, the Skrull Emperor orders Captain Marvel to build an Omni-Wave Projector for him and says he'll crush the Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver beneath a pile of furry things if he doesn't.

Conan, meanwhile, avoids being eaten by rats but then has a bunch of wolves to contend with!

And Brother Brimstone kills the actor who plays him on television, dragging Daredevil into a full-blown murder mystery.

I believe it was in this Spider-Man tale that I first discovered you can tell Hollywood movie fake dust from real dust by licking it to see if it tastes like soap.

This is a piece of knowledge that has, so far, not yet proven to be at all useful to me in my life.

However, of more concern is that the villain has blown up our hero's flat - and his girlfriend with it!

Fortunately, Mary Jane Watson will live to dance another day.

But will the Goblin, after pulling a stunt like that?

Elsewhere, Iron Man must put a stop to Midas' plans to destroy Tony Stark. I suspect Madame Masque will prove to be an unlikely ally for the tycoon.

In the Savage Land, the Thing is looking into unusual volcanic activity that could threaten mankind's survival and, along the way, encounters a pterodactyl, an allosaurus, a Ka-Zar and a Zabu.

But it looks like game over for Thor because Hela's decided to pop his clogs for him.

But, wait. Odin has a plan and sends him back to Earth, as Don Blake, in the hope that the goddess of death will not be able to find him there.

And it's good news for us all because Doctor Strange finally defeats Dracula and cures himself and Wong of their recent bout of vampirism!