Fifty years ago this month - October 1970.

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

***

October 1970 presented us with both good news and bad news from the world of music.

The good was Pink Floyd released Atom Heart Mother which became their first Number One album in the UK, although it only peaked at Number 55 in the United States. It did, however, achieve gold status in both countries and went platinum in Italy. Those Italians clearly liked their Floyd.

Not so happily, Janis Joplin died from a drug overdose and became yet another rock star to die at the age of 27.

Still alive and well was the Soviet author Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn who, in that month, was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature.

For those who like to splash around underwater, there were exciting events, as October also saw the discovery of the wreck of Confederate submarine Hunley, off South Carolina. Hunley held the distinction of being the first submarine in history to ever have sunk a ship in warfare.

It's, for me, one of the less memorable of this era's Avengers tales, as our heroes and Red Wolf find themselves up against that bloke with the Dutch name who'll go on to become the leader of Zodiac.

Given the presence of Red Wolf, I'm assuming the villain's inflicting serious ecological damage on Native American land.

In which case, it's a massive disappointment that Tomazooma doesn't show up to teach him a lesson.

Mitra's teeth! Robert E Howard's greatest creation gets his own comic and Barry Smith gets his chance to shine, as a whole new era begins for Marvel Comics, that of licensed properties.

My memories of this are that there's a dead bigfoot at the beginning of it, a queen with slaves in the middle of it, and a shot of a space-walking astronaut at the end of it. How could you not love it?

And how could you not love that cover? Bazza may not have hit his peak yet but I do have to say that's an image that'd make me want to rapidly liberate a book from its spinner rack.

What's this? Batroc, the Porcupine and Whirlwind? How on Earth can even the walking flag possibly defeat all three of those at once?

Realistically, he couldn't.

But he does.

Because it's his comic.

If I remember right, there's some villain or other trying to stir up unrest on the campuses of America, and Cap has to deliver a speech to calm down the nation. One where, proving he's not the square we may all have suspected him to be, he declares there's nothing sacred about the status quo.

Either that or he says there's nothing sacred about Status Quo. In which case, he's wrong because there's nothing more sacred than Status Quo.

I have a feeling the promised appearance by the Hulk is a cheat and he's just appearing in a film Steve Rogers is watching in the cinema, just before he goes into another of his moans about being a man out of his time.

This isn't one I remember but the internet informs me Daredevil and the Panther take on a gang called the Thunderbolts while a boy's life hangs in the balance.

Given the presence of street gangs, I shall assume this is another piece of social commentary, to rival that of this month's Captain America.

It's a major shock for readers, as Jack Kirby, the man who's drawn every issue of the book from #1 onwards, disappears without trace, to be replaced by the man who draws Spider-Man.

Yes, Jazzy John makes his debut on the strip. His run on it may not be long but some of us still recall it with affection.

Meanwhile, Magneto's scheme to manipulate Atlantis into waging war on New York progresses malevolently.

Those dastardly blaggards Hydra recruit the temporary services of Jim Wilson.

I'm pretty sure they do it in order to trick him into stealing some secret plans from under Thunderbolt Ross's nose.

And, of course, that, inevitably, brings them into conflict with the Hulk.

And, inevitably, he smashes them to pieces.

But we also nearly get the death of Jim.

And we get a short-lived truce with Thunderbolt Ross.

I'm struggling very badly to remember this one but I'm assuming Shellhead's in Japan.

I think there may be some sort of Japanese nationalist stuff going on and, possibly, a robot dragon and a nice old man and his daughter who help our hero defeat the forces of evil.

And computers.

I do believe this is Gil Kane's arrival on the strip.

And, as far as I can remember, it involves everyone thinking Doc Ock's been killed in an exploding plane - only for him to turn up, alive and well, thanks to the protective power of his terrifying tentacles.

Loki's still in Thor's body and threatening the United Nations.

Meanwhile, the Warriors Three - and Sif - have ventured into Mephisto's realm, in order to free the real thunder god from the clutches of the Lord of Evil; possibly, after Odin's banished him there, thanks to Odin being a king-sized numpty who never listens to a word anyone says.

October 1st, 1980 - Marvel UK, 40 years ago this week.

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

***

Nothing too exciting was happening in the realms of current affairs or entertainment, this week in 1980. Nor was there any change at the top of either the UK singles or album charts. Therefore, I shall leap straight into my look at the 800 million things everyone's favourite comics imprint was up to at the time.

Star Wars based hilarity is ours for just 30p.

Britain's greatest sci-fi mag gives us all the latest news and gossip from the world of Speculative Fiction, including a lengthy look at Milton Subotsky's attempts to bring the family-friendly majesty of Thongor to our silver screens.

Conan battles the thing from the sky, which, by the looks of it, seems to be some kind of pterosaur.

We also get Red Sonja vs an Ibis.

That doesn't exactly sound dramatic. What's she tangling with next - a mallard?

And we get The Hour of the Dragon. Wasn't that a big, rambling Robert E Howard tale involving a trip to China?

The X-Men tangle with a mystery villain who takes over their Danger Room and uses it against them.

I seem to remember there was an implication he was working for someone else but I never found out who.

Perhaps it was the Hellfire Club. That would make some kind of sense.

Luke Cage takes on the FF in a tale I have no memories of.

And the Thing travels back in time to cure himself of being the Thing but ends up having to beat himself up, in order to achieve it.

And it all turns out to have been in vain, anyway.

What do we get from this month's time travel travails?

We get a text adaptation of the Jon Pertwee adventure Ambassadors of Death.

We also get a look at the never-filmed Douglas Adams Doctor Who serial Shada.

We get Dragon's Claw, a strip in which Shaolin monks get dragged into the evil schemes of the Sontarans.

And, of course, there's the latest installment of the Abslom Daak serial Star Tigers.

Someone's abducting members of the Avengers - and Henry Peter Gyrich's getting in the way of attempts to find out who.

Havok makes his senses-shattering debut, while the Sentinels cause mayhem, thanks to the pencils of nefarious Neal Adams.

The Champions' attempts to publicly inaugurate themselves are hampered by the arrival of the Crimson Dynamo, Griffin and Titanium Man.

All I know about this one is the Micronauts and their ship are lost in a strange area of outer space, as drawn by Steve Ditko.

Dracula has his powers back but still has problems aplenty.

The Man-Thing rescues a baby thrown off a bridge; an act that, somehow, leads to a fight with a giant, killer moth created by a woman's attempts at witchcraft.

And we finish off with the tale of a man who hates spiders - only to discover they hate him too.

Unless I miss my ever-loving guess, we're getting the tale in which Ben Grimm convinces himself the Silver Surfer's carrying-on with Alicia, and decides to teach him a lesson.

Then totally fails to teach him a lesson.

From that cover, I confidently predict that Dr Octopus makes his introductory appearance and defeats our hero, with ease.

In other news, Spider-Man rescues John Jameson, as the astronaut's capsule hurtles Earthward.

He also tries to join the Fantastic Four but ends up having to battle the Chameleon for the first time.

Then he has to deal with the newly-created Sandman when the villain decides to flee justice by hiding out in Peter Parker's high school.

All in all, it's more Lee/Ditko goodness than one man could demand in an entire lifetime.

Spider-Man's still up against the gaseous menace of Belladonna - and having to contend with stroppy fashion designers, along the way.

Meanwhile, the Silver Surfer's decided the best way to bust free of Galactus' Space Barrier is to make himself Gamma-powered.

Needless to say, that's not the best idea anyone's ever had.

I don't know much about this week's contents but it would appear both Princess Leia and Darth Vader are having trouble getting past customs officers on some planet or other.

Elsewhere, we get the start of a reprint of Marvel's adaptation of the original movie.

And I would assume that Killraven's climactic battle with Skar is still ongoing.

Thanks to the Lava Men, Thor and the Human Torch are having trouble with an erupting Hawaiian volcano.

This all seems to be tied-in to a war between those antagonists and the Mole Man.

I don't know. Lava Men, the Mole Man, Tyrannus, Kala. Why can the denizens of the subterranean world never learn to live in peace with each other?

As for the rest of this week's contents, I don't have an inkling what's going on in them.

And, beyond the fact that ROM's cornered by the Dire-Wraiths, I don't have a clue what occurs in this one either.

Lois Lane #65 - The Musical Murder of Superman.

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

***

What was the first American super-hero comic you ever read?

For me, it's always been unclear as to whether it was Amazing Spider-Man Annual #6 or a coverless Superman comic featuring Lois Lane and a piano. The latter having been obtained from a jumble sale at my local community centre.

Because of it being coverless, just what that Superman comic was has always been a mystery to me and many years have I spent trying to track it down.

But now I've triumphed and can announce it was Lois Lane #65 The Musical Murder of Superman from way back in 1966.

Before anyone panics, I should point out that, despite its title, Superman's not murdered at any point in the story - not even slightly.

However, that doesn't matter because, as the cover reveals, it's an imaginary tale.

This is, of course, in contrast to all those true Superman tales we've read, over the years.

In it, thanks to being zapped by a statuette, Lois becomes temporarily evil and teams up with Metropolis super-criminal Lexo, to become the nefarious Lola.

What the world doesn't know is Lexo is, in reality, also acclaimed humanitarian pianist Luthor.

Now, Lois and Luthor get married and go on a crime spree together which ultimately leads to them paralysing Superman with a symphony Luthor's composed specially for the task.

With Superman out of the way, nothing can stop them! Nothing!

Unfortunately, that's when Lois' evil wears off and when Luthor's conscience gets the better of him.

You see, before he met Lois, he'd only stolen things so he could raise money for local charities. It was the bad influence of Lois that had sent him down the path of thieving for profit.

Suitably overwhelmed with guilt at their actions, the pair revive Superman from his paralysis and, still unaware that Luthor is Lexo, Superman arrests Lois, whereupon she's sentenced to ten years hard labour for her crimes. You have to hand it to the Metropolis criminal justice system, when it comes to punishment, it doesn't mess about.

Luthor, of course, cannot stand to see his beloved Lois in prison and launches an audacious raid to rescue her, only to quickly be shot dead by a guard.

Lois convinces the courts she wasn't responsible for her crimes - that it was the statuette that had made her do bad things - and she's released but, as the story concludes, it's made clear to us - and Superman - that she'll never, ever, get over her love for Luthor.

What a tragic little story, and I have to say it's genuinely touching to see the love between Lois and Luthor, one that means they're willing to sacrifice everything for each other. To be honest, it's a much more appealing romance than her relationship with Superman's ever been.

That aside, like all Superman-related stories from this era, it's completely daft but charming and its big selling point - apart from Luthor and Lois' marriage - is the art of Kurt Schaffenberger which is as consistently likeable as always.

Schaffenberger does seem to be one of those artists who get habitually ignored but he had a lovely style, a way with emotions and an obvious wit, and I can't remember him ever turning in an art job that wasn't completely impeccable.

The script's by Jerry Siegel, lending the tale a pleasing tie to the characters' very beginnings.

So, there you go; my twin introductions to American super-heroics were Amazing Spider-Man Annual #6 and Lois Lane #65 and, to be frank, there could be worse ways to first encounter the full colour derring-doings of colour-packed derring-doers.

And how appropriate that those two books should introduce me to the two heroes who are totemic of America's two biggest comic publishers. It's almost as though Fate itself was somehow guiding events...

September 24th, 1980 - Marvel UK, 40 years ago this week.

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

***

In these times of social distancing, I think we can safely say there was one record that was ahead of its time.

And that was Don't Stand So Close to Me by the Police which smashed straight in at Number One on the UK singles chart exactly 40 years ago this week.

Not to be outdone by that band was David Bowie who, simultaneously, smashed straight in at Number One on the UK album chart, with his latest platter that mattered Scary Monsters and Super Creeps.

Clearly, Bowie and the Police were in no mood to mess around, but what about the output of Marvel UK in that seven-day period? Was it, too, in battling form?

The Human Torch and Thor team up when the Lava Men try to steal the latter's hammer and use it as a power source.

Ms Marvel's still battling the Vision, and not making a very good job of it.

We're still finding out what would have happened if Spider-Man had stopped the burglar who went on to kill Uncle Ben.

And Morbius is still doing whatever Morbius is doing, in a tale drawn by Paul Gulacy.

We also get more of the comedy adventures of Man-Spider, as related by rascally Roy Thomas in his little-known guise of The Watcher.

Spider-Man's up against the miasmic menace of Belladonna and her attempts to gain revenge upon those in the fashion industry who've breached her copyright.

Despite having found a friendly little town to live in, Bruce Banner's about to be dragged into the Silver Surfer's latest bid to flee the planet Earth.

Spider-Woman's still being beset by nightmarish hallucinations.

And the She-Hulk's battling a giant metal snake that's been draining the oil tanks at Roxxon's refinery.

Most importantly of all, we have the chance to win 30 Kodak cameras, even though 30 cameras would be quite heavy to carry.

It's an exciting week for us all when Killraven appears, as if by magic, in the pages of this book.

We start his run with Death in the Family which sees the demise of Skar and, I think, Grok.

And possibly Hawk.

It seems a strange place to start the reprints with, as I can't remember Marvel UK having published any of the stories between Herb Trimpe's run and this tale, but I could be wrong.

In the main strip, Luke and friends manage to escape the empire, after his less-than-triumphant confrontation with his father.

Monsters of the Cosmos gives us a Lee/Lieber/Kirby yarn in which an astronaut, upon landing on Mars, is forced to take an evil plant back to Earth with him.

Happily for us all, he thwarts the plant's schemes, by blowing the ship up.

Finally, this week's tale of the Watcher gives us a Lee/Lieber tale in which an evil plant from outer space lands on Earth, its mind set on conquest, only for it to be eaten by a crow.

I can't help but feel those last two tales are a little too similar to be appearing side-by-side in the same issue.

All I can say of this issue is Nick Fury's clearly in it and, apparently, we get the 2nd great episode of Golem. I don't have a clue what that's about but I'm sure it's good reason to get excited.

2000 AD - August 1982.

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

***

There was only one thing you wanted to do if you were a TV presenter in August 1982, and that was grab your hammer, your strawberry jam and your microwave.

That's because it was the month in which the first compact discs were produced, in Germany, and what self-respecting TV presenter could react to news like that without wanting to apply all of those things to a CD to see if it destroyed it?

I do feel like this is at least the 13th time I've announced the launch of the compact disc, in these retrospectives, but I shall ignore that fact and assume this was indeed the first time they'd been foisted upon the world.

If there's any band I don't associate with compact discs, it's Dexy's Midnight Runners who always seemed far too wilful to be impressed by such things. August 1982 saw them score their second-ever UK Number One when Come On Eileen shot to the top of Britain's singles chart and stayed there for almost the whole month, before being deposed, at the death, by Survivor's Eye of the Tiger. I know which of those two records I prefer, and it's not the one that came from a Sylvester Stallone movie.

Speaking of things that came from movies, the whole of August saw Kids From Fame by the Kids from Fame hog the very top of the British album chart.

Over in the pages of 2000 AD, we were still being treated to Robo-Hunter, Rogue Trooper, Judge Dredd, Mean Arena and Ace Trucking Co, which is a lineup that seemed to have been in place for an awful long time now.

Prog 276 was still inviting us to solve the secret of the fruit gums. Reader, I don't remember if I ever did.

Prog 277 invited me to see the mushroom men. I'm not sure I'd wish to see such a thing, even if everyone assures me their leader was a fun guy.

Prog 279, meanwhile, gave us the chance to see Duran Duran join the Squaxx Dek Thargo.

Frankly, I don't have a clue what that means.

September 17th, 1980 - Marvel UK, 40 years ago this week.

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

***

This week in 1980, a near-month-long search came to a climax with the recapture of Hercules, the bear who'd escaped and gone to ground during the filming of a Kleenex advert on a Scottish island.

On the UK album chart, it was time to start singing of army dreamers, breathing, and married temptresses with Russian names, as Kate Bush's third album Never Forever hit the Number One spot.

Amazingly, it was the first album by a female British solo artist to ever top that chart, and did so in style by smashing straight in at Number One.

Meanwhile, Kelly Marie was still tightly gripping the pinnacle of the UK singles chart, with Feels Like I'm in Love.

Spider-Man and Daredevil are still tangling with the Unholy Three who've kidnapped a young girl and are holding her captive on Coney Island.

Am I losing my marbles or did there use to be four of them? Wasn't one of them a frogman? What happened to him? Did he decide to go solo?

If so, I'm not surprised. Why, with the powers of a frog, a man would be near-unbeatable.

In our next strip, we're yet again asked, "What if Spider-Man had stopped the burglar who killed Uncle Ben?"

Apparently, he would have had a successful career in showbusiness.

Spider-Man, that is. Not Uncle Ben.

Nor the burglar.

Elsewhere, Ms Marvel has to fight the Vision if she's to prevent a radioactive truck causing chaos and destruction.

After that, Spidey and the X-Men unite to tackle Morbius.

Then, we're once more confronted with the matter of what would have happened had a spider been bitten by a radioactive human.

And, finally, the Fantastic Four try to discover what's caused a global power blackout.

I think this is the one in which they discover aliens at the North Pole are trying to get home and, by doing so, are inadvertently endangering our world.

Spider-Man finds himself, and others, being sent into a state of paranoid rage by the mechanical machinations of Jonas Harrow.

In a tale drawn by Alfredo Alcala, the Hulk's blundered into the depths of a nuclear power plant and is smashing it to pieces, threatening to plunge the whole place into meltdown.

Rather less destructively, She-Hulk battles to hold together a collapsing suspension bridge, before everyone on it's killed.

In what may be a hallucination, Spider-Woman finds herself trapped in a huge cobweb, as a SHIELD agent threatens to stab her to death.

And, in his second appearance of the issue, Bruce Banner's about to find himself drafted into the Silver Surfer's latest bid to flee our world.

All I can say about this week's book is the late Frank Charlesworth's now taken possession of a Spitfire pilot's corpse, in order to help out at Dunkirk.

In this exciting issue, Luke Skywalker gains a father but loses a hand.

Gullivar Jones is still battling the forces of Martian evil.

Monsters of the Cosmos gives us a Lieber/Reinman tale of giant invaders who flee at the first sign of Earthling resistance, leaving behind equipment which disguises the fact they really were giants, in order to make themselves look less cowardly.

And, finally, the Watcher tells of a man who poisons a rival, in order to make contact with beings on Venus, only, when he gets there, to discover those beings are not what they seem.

Life on Venus? How strangely topical.

Forty years ago today - September 1980.

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

***

Wait! What's that sound?

It's the Past!

And it's calling us to leap right into it!

The Avengers complete their battle with the out-of-control Red Ronin.

If I remember correctly, Iron Man defeats it by cutting it to pieces with its own laser sword.

And we all get back to the Avengers Mansion, just in time for Ms Marvel to go into labour!

Captain America invades Machinesmith's secret HQ and defeats his army of androids...

...only to discover it was all a ruse by the villain, to make the star-spangled Avenger kill him by destroying the computer in which his mind now resides.

I have a feeling this is one of those stories in which the authorities decide to give a super-villain his deadly costume back, in order to calm his tormented mind.

Anyway, the Gladiator's gone mad and is out to impress someone - possibly his female psychiatrist - by murdering Daredevil in a local museum.

I must confess that's the first thing I always do when I want to impress a psychiatrist.

Having messed about with the entrance to the Negative Zone, the Richards' only son has now been possessed by Agatha Harkness' banished son - leading to a dramatic intervention by Gabriel the exorcist!

I have to say that's a very left-field guest appearance. I mean, yes, he is an exorcist but he's not a character I'd ever expect to show up in any Marvel book, ever, and I can think of a Marvel exorcist who seems a more obvious choice for the job.

Down on his luck again, Bruce Banner's taken in by a kind stranger.

Only for it to turn out he's the alter-ego of 3-D Man who's out to destroy the Hulk before he can do any more damage!

I have a feeling 3-D Man dies in this tale, suggesting it was created mainly to wrap up loose ends from the character's own short-lived series.

There's all sorts of stuff going on in this tale, involving the Valkyrie and a king and queen who want her and a Thor-substitute as their spouses.

That's about as much sense of it as I can make.

It's an all-time classic, as the X-Men conclude their fight with the Shi'ar Imperial Guard, and Jean Grey makes the ultimate sacrifice to save the universe from herself.

I don't recall too much about this one but, clearly, there's a Dreadnought on the loose.

I'm also aware we get the return of Madame Masque who seems to have reverted to her villainous ways.

I believe Conan and his latest lady friend find themselves in a castle inhabited by a giant dog possessed by the malevolent spirit of its deceased and sorcerous owner.

Needless to say, Conan soon lets it know who's boss.

Thanks to some sort of lab accident, a scientist and his janitor brother find themselves fused into a single but conflicted entity.

Fortunately, Spider-Man's on hand to stop them before they destroy New York.

Escaping from jail, the Cobra decides to dump his usual partner Mr Hyde and strike out on his own.

And strike-out he does, as barely has he returned to his life of crime than Spider-Man shows up and arrests him, thanks to a fight that can only be labelled, "One-sided."