The Marvel Lucky Bag - August 1970.

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

***

August 1970 was a quiet month in the world of cinema but it did see the release of a Japanese film entitled Space Amoeba. I refuse to believe there's a single person alive who wouldn't want to see a film called Space Amoeba.

Amazingly, it featured giant monsters running rampant upon the planet Earth. Who would ever have expected such a thing from a Japanese movie?

Anyway, it all sounds mind-bogglingly dramatic but, over in the UK, the singles chart was proving to be anything but that, as Elvis Presley's The Wonder of You managed to spend the entire month at Number One, seeing-off challenges from the likes of Lola and Tears of a Clown.

Things were a little bit livelier on the LP chart, as August kicked off with the seemingly inevitable Bridge over Troubled Water at Number One before it was displaced by the Moody Blues' A Question of Balance featuring the smash-hit single Question.

We get the launch of a brave new comic, as the Inhumans and Black Widow each land a brand new series of their own.

I'm pretty sure the Inhumans tale is the Jack Kirby authored one in which the Himalayan hide-and-seekers are tricked, by Maximus, into thinking the Fantastic Four have launched a missile attack upon their kingdom.

I've read the Black Widow story but have no memory of what happens in it, other than that it's drawn by John Buscema, so, at least we know it's bound to look good.

And we get the launch another new comic, as Ka-Zar and Dr Doom are granted their own strips.

In the first tale, Kraven, tired of being beaten-up by Spider-Man, decides to have a change, by getting himself beaten-up by Ka-Zar.

It's another tale drawn by Jack Kirby. He may have been about to leave the company but you'd never have known it from the amount of material he was getting published by them.

In the second tale, Doom, for reasons I can't remember, decides to make a copy of himself, which, inevitably, turns against him. Possibly, he wants to transplant his brain into it, so he'll look pretty again.

Meanwhile, the people of Latveria are revolting...

Apart from the thrill of seeing Doom in action, the main attraction of this tale is, of course, that it's beautifully drawn by Wally Wood.

It's another first-issue spectacular, as Iron Man finally gets an annual of his very own. It does seem surprising that it took him this long to manage it.

As far as I can make out, it's made up entirely of reprints.

First, we get Shellhead's original encounter with the Titanium Man. A battle which leaves Happy Hogan close to death.

Then we get the story which alternates between Gene Colan and Jack Kirby on pencils, as Warlord Krang's attempts to impress Lady Dorma lead to a battle between Iron Man and Subby.

Despite what the cover may imply, at no point does Iron Man have to tackle Titanium Man and the Sub-Mariner at the same time.

And we get the launch of yet another new comic!

But this is an odd one. Not only has Ka-Zar landed his own strip in Amazing Adventures, this month, but he also gets his own book, on top of that.

What lay behind Marvel's sudden burst of enthusiasm for the character, I have no idea.

The book's opener is a reprint of the jungle lord's first Silver Age appearance, in the pages of X-Men #10. 

We then get a short Hercules story. Exactly what happens in it, I cannot say but the Avengers and Ares are, somehow, involved.

And we finish off with the Gene Colan drawn Daredevil tale in which Ka-Zar's back in England and has been framed for murder, by the Plunderer.

Good gravy! Now even the Outlaw Kid has his own comic!

Not that I have a clue who the Outlaw Kid is but it means Marvel now has six Western titles in its ranks, suggesting the genre must be a strong seller for the company, even though we all associate this era, for it, with super-heroes.

Regardless, this issue seems to be made up entirely of reprints from 1950s books.

Eco-Warrior Prince Namor decides to join a protest to protect Central Park from destruction at the hands of a hard-hearted tycoon.

Inevitably, it's not long before the ruler of Atlantis finds himself having to tackle that tycoon's latest instrument of environmental destruction, the giant digger known as Brutivac.

Fortunately, the tycoon's son's on hand to make the ruthless businessman see the error of his ways, in a manner we've seen about a million times before in Marvel comics from this era.

Strike a light, it's the launch of yet another new book!

And it's yet more cowboy capers, as a whole bunch of six-shooting heroes get a run-out, some in brand new tales and some in reprints from the 1960s.

Fifty years ago this month - August 1970.

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

***

If there's one thing we won't be doing this year, it's going to festivals.

However, there were no such concerns in 1970, and so it was that this month of that year saw the Isle of Wight Festival attract 600,000 people to East Afton Farm. Wikipedia tells me it was the largest festival of all time but it's Wikipedia, so I can't guarantee it's true.

What I can guarantee is the artists present included Jimi Hendrix, the Who, the Doors, Chicago, Richie Havens, John Sebastian, Joan Baez, Ten Years After, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, the Moody Blues and Jethro Tull.

One man who wasn't present was England national football team captain Bobby Moore. He was in Colombia, under arrest, accused of stealing a bracelet during World Cup preparations.

Happily, he was soon cleared of the charges which were claimed, by some, to be a blatant attempt to sabotage the England team's chances.

The Lethal Legion, otherwise known as, "That bunch of losers who can't get anywhere on their own," unveil their plot to destroy the world's mightest super-team.

To be honest, I can't recall what the plot is but I'm sure it'll be infinitely diabolical.

Is this the story in which the Grim Reaper first discovers the Vision is his, "Brother?"

Cap visits small-town America and instantly finds himself up against the Hell's Angels.

Except Marvel can't bring itself to call them that and, instead, they're referred to as Satan's Angels which I'm sure will keep the Hell's Angels' lawyers happy.

Do the Hell's Angels have lawyers? That doesn't seem a very Hell's Angels thing to have.

My memories of this one are a little vague but I do believe Stilt-Man gatecrashes some sort of TV show that Daredevil and Karen Page are appearing on, and the Stunt-Master's mixed up in it all, somehow.

The Mafia decides to invade the Baxter Building, put the Fantastic Four in crates and sling them in the river.

Except, of course, the same Marvel legal titan who gave us, "Satan's Angels," also gives us, "The Maggia."

I do believe this is Jack Kirby's last full FF tale.

Bruce Banner decides to recruit an old science friend to help him escape his Gamma Ray curse.

Needless to say, it all goes wrong and, instead, our hero finds himself being chased around the country by the Hulk, after the experiment manages to split them into two separate beings.

The Controller's back, in a tale I've no recollection of whatsoever.

But I have always liked the villain. He has a nasty streak that appeals to me.

Peter Parker gets the flu and the resulting fever prompts him to turn up at Gwen's 18th birthday party and tell the guests that he's Spider-Man.

Fortunately, once he's regained his senses, he has the initiative to get Hobie Brown to appear, dressed as Spider-Man, to convince everyone Peter can't really be the web-slinger.

This subterfuge seems to fool everyone present but is Captain Stacey really taken in...?

Neal Adams draws his first-ever Thor cover but the innards are still the work of Jack Kirby, as Loki body-swaps with his nemesis.

I say he body-swaps but, as far as I can remember, in this segment, it's just depicted as a face-swap.

However, in the later, Neal Adams drawn installments of this tale, it seems to be a full body-swap.

But I do have to say that's not the greatest cover Neal has ever done.

July 30th, 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 very afternoon, in 1980, a veritable clash of the titans reached the starting line, as Sebastian Coe and Steve Ovett launched themselves into the first round of the Moscow Olympics' 1500 metres contest. The whole nation waited with bated breath to discover which of these record-pummelling giants of putting one foot in front of the other would prove himself supreme.

Obviously, the nation would have to wait a bit longer because this was just the first round.

It may not have been clear which of that pair ruled the middle-distance roost but it was certain who ruled the vinyl roost.

And that was Deep Purple whose best-of compilation Deepest Purple now sat atop the UK album chart.

Meanwhile, Odyssey's Use it up and Wear it Out retained the prime spot on the UK singles chart, that it had claimed the week before.

We get more of the Fourth Doctor strip Dragon's Claw.

And we get yet more of the Daleks vs the Monstrons.

We also experience a Lee/Lieber/Heck masterpiece in which a scientist uses the time machine he's invented to go back to Ancient Egypt and discover where a pharaoh's treasure's buried - only to find himself entombed with the treasure!

Quite why a man who can invent a time machine needs to worry about making money is beyond me. Surely, a man of his genius is capable of making a fortune from his inventions?

And we finish with a two-part Alan Moore tale called Business as Usual.

Spidey's up against a thing called Meteor Madness.

I'm guessing this is the one where he teams up with the new Giant-Man, AKA Black Goliath, to thwart the return of Meteor Man. I couldn't say that for certain, though.

I can say for certain that the Hulk's up against the might of Jack Frost.

To be honest, the cover blurb, "Hulk fights the ice statues," doesn't exactly set my pulse racing. I mean, they're made of ice. They have to be the weakest opponents he's ever come up against.

Feel more concern for the She-Hulk, however. She's up against a violent robot that people keep mistaking for her.

Spider-Woman, meanwhile, is now in America and on the trail of Brother Grimm.

And, in The Defenders, Bruce Banner has to perform an emergency medical procedure on Subby, Nighthawk and Hellcat.

I think this may be the one in which that Russian bloke turns himself and the Red Guardian into god-like beings.

Nick Fury's trying to do a rescue mission in France - but is hindered by a medic who's determined to retrieve his dropped medical kit, no matter the risk.

That is all I know of this issue's contents but it would seem we also get the start of a colour strip called I Was Adolf's Double.

Of that strip, I know nothing.

And I know almost as nothing about this week's Empire Strikes Back Weekly.

Obviously, I know the adaptation of the movie continues at its own leisurely pace but the events of the back-up strips are unknown to me.

I would assume Gullivar Jones is still on Mars and the Watcher's still telling us tales designed to keep our minds ethical and our actions responsible.

Manhunter: Cobras of the Deep - Detective Comics #440.

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

***

Thanks to the wonders of DC Comics' 100-page publications, we lovers of 1970s derring-do were treated to the exploits of the New Manhunter.

Which was all well and good - except most of us had never even heard of the old Manhunter.

Fortunately, Detective Comics #440 put that right, as it gave us the wartime Simon and Kirby classic Cobras of the Deep in which big-game hunter, turned battler of Nazism, Paul Kirk strikes yet another blow to Hitler's ambitions to create a Reich that will last a thousand years, by making sure it only lasts for twelve.

Determined to win the war, a German submarine captain concocts a plan to rid the Axis powers forever of the threat from their deadly nemesis Manhunter.

His plan is simple, invite our hero to a place and then blow him up by shooting the mountain of dynamite he's inadvertently standing on.

Unfortunately, the Nazi ne'er-do-well hasn't taken into account Kirk's ability to leap out of the way when things explode and, so, within mere panels, he's out to hunt-down his would-be assassins.

Donning a diving helmet they've left behind, he soon follows their trail to the bottom of the sea, where he's captured, before sabotaging their sub and bringing its crew to justice.

In truth, at nine pages, it's not a long tale. No longer, in fact, than an adventure from the new Manhunter. But it rolls along quickly and efficiently and still has a little time to take in the scenery. I especially like Kirk's one-panel meeting with a huge but passive octopus.

We get no real sense of who Paul Kirk is or what he's about, as he gets just three panels before changing into costume.

It's basically a typical piece of wartime comic book propaganda with incompetent Nazis who talk funny and a brave American dealing justice to them, thanks to his greater ingenuity and refusal to give up.

I was struck, however, by the tendency of the Nazi sailors to wear their uniforms while walking around on American soil and committing their clandestine acts. Frankly, from that, I'm not convinced they're the sharpest knives in Hitler's drawer.

Overall, it's a painless enough read but there's nothing at all in it that would have given anyone reason to think such a standard-issue adventurer had the potential to be revived as one of the most intriguing characters in comics.

STOP PRESS! 

Because Charlie47 demanded it, here's the panel which shows Manhunter's deathless encounter with an octopus.

July 23rd, 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.

***

There's no bigger fan of running around in pointless circles than me.

And that's why I was so excited, this week, in 1980.

That's because it was the week in which the Moscow Olympics got underway.

It was a controversial event, with several countries, including the United States, pulling out in protest at the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.

Despite pressure from the similarly-minded UK government, British athletes went ahead and took part, picking up 5 gold medals, 7 silver and 9 bronze.

But it wasn't all celebration for the people of Britain, as UK unemployment hit a 44-year high of almost 1.9 million people.

Over on the Pop charts, Odyssey suddenly ruled the roost, thanks to their single Use it up and Wear it Out.

And, on the album chart, Queen held firm at Number One with their platter that mattered The Game.

The Fourth Doctor's still involved in the intrigue of the Dragon's Claw.

In the Daleks' strip, a strange craft has landed on Skaro.

In a Lee/Heck masterpiece, a businessman bullies a scientist into giving him a device that can grant humans the longevity of a redwood tree.

I think we can all guess what happens next.

And we finish off with a two-part Alan Moore tale in which a spy investigates a company called Galaxy Plastics.

Given the name of that company, I'll make a guess that Autons are involved, though I confess that it is just a guess.

My information on this one is almost infinitely sketchy but I do know Lightmaster's abducted the Dazzler and got her hooked up to his deadly machine.

And only Spider-Man can save her!

Nick Fury and his men are parachuting in to save some commandos trapped in a French farmhouse.

Needless to say, this causes panic amongst the watching Germans.

In the present day, it seems the American military is out to get ROM.

In Shang-Chi's strip, there's some intrigue about the location of a stolen statuette called The Golden Dragon.

The Rawhide Kid's under attack by a posse of townspeople and is low on bullets.

Wulf the Briton's still laying siege to Cartamandua's fortress.

Kull and his apemen allies are battling a tentacular horror.

And Machine Man's hunting down the villain known as Kublai Khan, thanks to said criminal having given him a headache.

I know little of this week's issue, other than that Marvel's adaptation of The Empire Strikes Back continues - seemingly, with the Millennium Falcon's flight into an asteroid field.

I am assuming we get another tale of the Watcher, and that Gullivar Jones' adventures on Mars are also still ongoing.

2000 AD - June 1982.

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

***

You know, many times, over the years, people have asked me if I have any regrets in life.

And the one thing I always tell them is, "Yes. You see, I've been to paradise but I've never been to Leeds."

And I'm not the only one because neither had American singer Charlene and, in June 1982, her lament on the matter led her to have one of that month's three UK Number Ones.

That spell kicked off with Adam Ant's Goody Two Shoes in top spot before it was removed by the aforementioned Charlene. But Charlene herself was soon extracted from that position by the power and majesty of Captain Sensible's cover of Happy Talk.

But, wait. What's this Google is telling me? There was no mention of Leeds in that song and Charlene's complaint was actually, "I've been to paradise but I've never been to me."?

Well, I've never been to her, either, and you don't hear me complaining.

And I doubt she's as exciting as Leeds.

And there were no complaints from Madness either because their Absolute Madness entered June by ruling the British album chart. However, Roxy Music's Avalon soon reclaimed the pinnacle from it, before quickly losing it to ABC's The Lexicon of Love.

It was clearly a busy month on the music charts but it was also a jam-packed time at the cinema, for that month saw the release of a whole host of memorable movies.

Most famously, we got ET: The Extra-Terrestrial which soon became the biggest box-office smash of the decade.

But that wasn't all. Hollywood also gave us, Tron, Rambo: First Blood, 48 Hrs and Tootsie.

And sport was clearly determined not to be left behind because that month saw the start of the 1982 World Cup in Spain.

On more serious matters,  it was the month in which the Argentine forces in the Falklands' capital Stanley surrendered to the British military.

As if all that wasn't enough excitement, the galaxy's greatest comic was still around and giving us the adventures of Robo-Hunter, Rogue Trooper, The Mean Arena, Tharg's Future Shocks, Judge Dredd and Ace Trucking Co.

Dredd was still fighting the Apocalypse War where it seems he got to teach the Russians a lesson or two in law-enforcement.

Robo-Hunter, meanwhile, was involved in a thing called The Filby Case. Whether this was named in honour of the supporting character in the first movie adaptation of The Time Machine, I could not say.

July 16th, 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 was an exciting one for lovers of chimpanzees, for it was then that ex Bedtime for Bonzo star Ronald Reagan was nominated to be U.S. president, at the 1980 Republican National Convention in Detroit.

Ronnie may have been going down like a proverbial house on fire over there but, in London, something was literally going down like a house on fire.

And that was Alexandra Palace which went up in flames in spectacular style. First, Crystal Palace. Now, Alexandra Palace. It's enough to put you off living in palaces.

Which is the only reason I've never lived in one.

Speaking of things royal, on the UK album chart, that week, Queen grabbed the top spot with their LP The Game.

However, on the singles chart, there was no change at the summit, with ELO and Olivia Newton-John clinging to the crown they'd first snatched a week earlier.

I don't know if there are any palaces in this comic but I do know we get Part 2 of the new strip Dragon's Claw.

We also get a text retelling of The Celestial Toymaker.

There's a Steve Ditko tale entitled I Took a Long Journey into Fear in which a mad scientist murders a colleague, in order to get the equipment he needs for his time machine.

Needless to say, it doesn't end well for him.

Elsewhere, we get more adventures of the Daleks, this time involving the Monstrons.

And we finish off with a two-page tale featuring Autons and toy soldiers.

Frankly, I don't have a clue who the Monstrons are.

But, with a name like that, they can only be trouble.

Spidey has his work cut out for him when the Lightmaster takes possession of the Dazzler.

Meanwhile, Spider-Woman finds herself up against the menacing peril of Brother Grimm who starts the tale by watching a panto. 

In a Steve Ditko drawn tale, the Hulk finds himself in Jack Frost's subterranean lair, along with the retired villain's collection of ice sculptures.

Above ground, She-Hulk's accused of killing her own alter-ego!

And, in The Defenders, Valkyrie has to battle the ever-annoying menace of Lunatik after he kills a couple of drug dealers, in front of her.

All I know about this week's issue is our gang - minus Luke - are in the process of fleeing Hoth, pursued by the forces of evil.

I would assume Gullivar Jones is still gallivanting around on Mars, that we're getting more of the strip known as Monsters of the Cosmos and that there's another tale of the Watcher, put there to help us learn the difference between right and wrong.

I'm not sure which strip that striking cover represents but I do know that, inside, Wulf and his men are laying siege to the fortress of Cartamandua - and it's not going well for our Brythonic battlers.

In the present day, a man calling himself Kublai Khan wants to transfer his mind into Machine Man's body.