Thursday, 24 September 2026

September 22nd, 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. 
***

Marvel UK.

What craziness is it up to now?

Marvel UK, the Titans #49, the Fantastic Four

John Romita's short run on the Fantastic Four reaches its dramatic conclusion with victory over the "monster" that's been rampaging through the streets of New York.

But that's nothing compared to the nightmare to come, as the Thing's been left in a high-tech chair in the Baxter Building with no one around to make sure it doesn't kill him!

When it comes to Captain America, still with Red Skull's nuclear tape attached to the back of his neck, the star-spangled Frisbee flinger's forced to return to Exile Island and combat the ageing war criminals after whom it's named. But not to worry. SHIELD is working on a way to help him.

Speaking of SHIELD; in his own strip, Nick Fury's still fighting Baron Strucker.

And Strucker has a Satan-Claw!

But who cares about that? Nick's got a face-changing gizmo. And that's a lot more use in a fight, it appears.

Subby's got plenty on his plate when Captain Barracuda sneaks into a naval base and steals its Sonic Magno-Directoid.

I have no idea what that is but have no doubt it's a thing you wouldn't want a man called Captain Barracuda to get his hands on. Frankly, I wouldn't even want Captain Haddock to get his hands on it.

And the Ghost Rider has more on his plate than even that when he discovers he's going to have to take on the whole of Zodiac. Frankly, given how useless he is in most of his fights, I don't fancy his chances.

Mighty World of Marvel #208. Avengers vs Inhumans

Hooray! The Kree/Skrull War reaches the Great Refuge and I believe we're given the reason why Maximus went mad!

Needless to say, it's all the fault of that bounder Black Bolt!

But, before that, we have the spectacle of t
he Hulk vs the Devastator who I remember being some sort of Russian spy in a suit of armour and causing trouble on Gamma Base.

But, of course, no armour's going to protect him for long from the incredible one.

As far as I can make out, Conan's still stuck in the tale that humanity can only know as The Dweller in the Pool!

And there are more Hollywood woes for Daredevil when the Stilt-Man arrives in Tinseltown and disguises himself as the Stunt-Master, in a bid to catch our hero unawares!

From memory, I think his plan involves him attaching his stilts to the side of his motorbike and pretending they're super-fancy rockets intended to make the thing jump further.

Marvel UK, Planet of the Apes #101

Sadly, my knowledge of this week's issue is limited but, from that cover, I think it's safe to assume the reprint of Marvel's adaptation of the first Apes movie has reached the point at which Taylor gets caught in a net and blurts out his iconic line.

I'm also going to assume that we get the conclusion of Derek Zane's latest adventure.

I do know for certain that, after last week's absence, the Man-Thing is back and that ruthless businessman F. A. Schist has entered La Hacienda, in a bid to prevent the muck monster from inflicting damage upon its valuable Fountain of Youth!

And I'm going to guess that Ka-Zar and Tongah are having to assist the Zebra-Men who've been captured and imprisoned by a wrong 'un called Zaurai.

Super Spider-Man with the Super-Heroes #189, the Jackal and the Grizzly

The tension's so taut that you could cut it with a knife and it would slap you in the face, like an over-tightened rubber band, as the Jackal attaches a spy device to Peter Parker's arm and declares it can't be removed without blowing his arm off!

Needless to say, Petey removes it without blowing his arm off and then polishes off the Grizzly too, for good measure.

Will the Jackal never learn that he'll never get one over on our hero?

When it comes to Thor, Loki has control of Asgard - thanks to now possessing the Odin-Ring - and he intends to marry Sif!

Thor's not big on that idea and neither is Sif but, then, to keep the thunder god out of the way, Loki creates Durok the Destroyer and sets him off rampaging away on Midgard!

Elsewhere, Tony Stark finally overcomes the cheeky LMD that's taken his place - but at the cost of a heart attack that may just claim his life!

Meanwhile, the Invaders live up to their name and invade a small part of Germany, in a bid to prevent the villainous Brain Drain from doing whatever it is he's planning to do. However, on their way there, they're attacked by three Teutonic warrior gods!

And Spider-Man and the Human Torch must team-up when the Frightful Four launch their latest bid to take over the Baxter Building. Unfortunately, the cloddish quartet then open the gateway to the Negative Zone and suddenly have to deal with Annihilus trying to enter our world and take it over!

18 comments:

Anonymous said...

Where did that Spidey cover's villains eventually end up?

Answer:

The Grizzly:

https://tainthemeat.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/marvel-superheroes-top-trumps-3.jpg

The Jackal:

https://tainthemeat.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/marvel-superheroes-top-trumps-4.jpg

Phillip

Anonymous said...

STEVE - Surely you meant “star-spangled shield slinger?” You feelin all right, bud?

Anonymous said...

Leapin’ Lampreys and Sufferin’ Sturgeon, I can’t believe you worked Capatain Haddock into the conversation!!!

Hallelujah!!!

On behalf of the Belgian contingent may I award you a Belgian No Prize, Steve?

CH

Anonymous said...

PHILLIP - I have no particular recommendation for a DC war comic. If you like tanks, I would read HAUNTED TANK stories. If you like GIs I would read Sergeant ROCK. If you like something akin to the RAT PATROL or COMBAT tv series, again I would read HAUNTED TANK or perhaps the LOSERS.

I dare say, though, that stylistically Kirby‘s “THE LOSERS “is a gem.

we should keep in mind that we are reading comic books though and not watching realism like the first 30 minutes of Saving Private Ryan. You are going to the “against all odds” stories.
CH

Anonymous said...

Joe - The strange harlequin green (?) of Haunted Tank, on some covers, evokes some memory from early childhood, but I can't remember what, for the life of me! Here's the harlequin green tank; but my computer's security says it's a 'low trust website', so just in case you don't want to risk it, it's GI Combat # 169!

Sometimes the Haunted Tank's a Stuart, but not on # 169. That's a more modern-looking/post WW2 tank!

Phillip

Steve W. said...

Anon, I suspected that I'd used, “star-spangled shield slinger,” before and, therefore, made an executive decision to not use it.

Charlie, on behalf of the site, I accept that No-Prize and thank everyone who made it possible. Especially myself.

Anonymous said...

I thought it was a good one, Steve, as the way Cap threw his shield around it might as well have been a frisbee. Still, it's nice you got a No-Prize.

Btw, those Marvel UK comics had a bit more competition this week, as IPC hit the back of the net with its latest, exciting new paper for boys... Roy of the Rovers #1!

https://www.greatnewsforallreaders.com/blog/2016/9/25/on-this-day-25-september-1976-roy-of-the-rovers

Note the price: 7p an issue (as was Action, if you recall that cover I linked to last week). That's 2p less than than the Marvels... and there were no reprints!

-sean

Steve W. said...

Thanks, Sean.

As for IPC, Marvel UK was giving me the Kree/Skrull War. I'd happily pay 2p extra for that. Unless, of course, Roy of the Rovers was also finding himself caught up in an intergalactic war. I'd happily pay 2p extra to see that as well.

Anonymous said...

Not sure why DC stuck them in a Stuart tank. Jeb was a traitor and frankly a Custer. His behavior at Gettysburg probably cost leave the battle.

Anonymous said...

That's a fair point, Steve, as I do not recall Roy Race ever getting caught up in an intergalactic war. But on the other hand did the Avengers ever spend weeks at the bottom of the first division facing the possibility of relegation, like Melchester Rovers in the 78/79 season?

Still, tbh Roy was too clean cut a comic character for my taste really...
But what about Action? You could read Kids Rule OK, Death Game 1999 - funnily enough written by the same guy, Tom Tully, as Roy of the Rovers - Hellman of Hammer Force, and Hook Jaw.... and still have a spare 2p left!
I'd have thought that might have held some appeal to a cost-conscious Yorkshireman.

-sean

Anonymous said...

Nothing wrong with a little self love Steve!!!

Anonymous said...

Too funny Sean!

Anonymous said...

Steve, no Kree or Skrulls in Melchester but that issue did have an exclusive article from HRH The Duke of Edinburgh! Also, Neal Adam’s ghost inked the first episode of Tommy’s Troubles. Apparently.

DW (Roy of the Rovers fan August 1978 to October 1979)

Anonymous said...

Sean, funny they use the term ‘soccer’ on the cover. Not a widely used term. Certainly not around our way.

DW

Colin Jones said...

Steve, the POTA cover depicts the Derek Zane story not the famous scene from the first apes film.

Radio 4's ARCHIVE ON 4 on Saturday night is about the 50th anniversary of Callaghan's government asking the IMF for a loan which has gone down in legend alongside the three-day week and the Winter Of Discontent to show how terrible the '70s supposedly were and how we needed Thatcherite neoliberalism to save us!

Anonymous said...

BREAKING NEWS! Charlie’s “neighbor” Jenny McCarthy, the famous Playboy bunny, who was a vaccine denier is moving houses! Yay!

(She Actually lives 20 minutes up the road in Saint Charles with Mark Wahlenberg.)

She now claims she was never a vaccine deny, she just wanted safer vaccines. Oh. Revelation there!

Only the United States would rally behind a Playboy bunny and her opinion on deeply scientific subjects like vaccines and wreck society:

Anonymous said...

DW, I don't recall ever hearing the word 'soccer' in everyday speech back then either (or now really, for that matter).
It did appear quite regularly above the title on old football comics though. See for instance this old Tiger cover picked at random (mainly for Paul/McScotty's benefit, as it features Hot-Shot Hamish ;) -

https://www.greatnewsforallreaders.com/blog/2018/1/28/on-this-day-30-january-1982-tiger

But it's not that odd when you bear in mind that IPC comics were distributed in a number of Anglophone territories, and in some of them other forms of football - like Gaelic, or Aussie Rules - were popular.
I don't imagine that even among 'soccer' fans a crediting 'HRH the Duke of Edinburgh' on the cover would have done much for Irish sales of RotR #1 though...

-sean

Steve W. said...

Colin, thanks for the POTA netting clarification.