Fishing for girls and super-hero adventure.

Week Ending 24th November1973

Right confession time, I always make the opening image up of each week's comics first, from images of my own comics collection, with newsagent writing, (whether it's an address, house number or name,) rips, tears and rusty staples, warts and all, they're not slabbed, they're there to be read. The image of MWOM #60 in the above has the top right hand corner missing (which you can't see due to my "skilful" cut and pasting,) and a name written on top. The image below is cleaner and complete. I owned them both, replace the damaged one with a better copy that I forgot to scan and replace in my collection covers file. I've scanned it now, replacing the old one. As a collector I love the comics with sentimental value, that lived in and loved feel you get from a tatty copy, but I can't also resist up grading to a neater, cleaner copy. Don't worry the old tatty mag went to a good home.

The Mighty World of Marvel #60

The third week for "A refuge divided!" story line from the Incredible Hulk King-Size Special #1 and the third original British Marvel cover used to showcase that story for MWOM as the wonderful original cover by Jim Steranko was never used, so for the third time Ron Wilson created a unique cover for us British readers. OK it's no "Steranko" cover, but I really like it. Cover of the week? Yeah why not. 

The Incredible Hulk "In the Land of the Inhumans!"

Writer: Gary Friedrich

Artist: Marie Severin

Inker: Syd Shores

Originally published in The Incredible Hulk King Size Special  #1

Cover date October 1968

(Published in July 1968)

An unknown artist, inker and writer created this opening splash page that is based on an imaginary scene from later on in the story. In truth I did think that some of the later panels had been adapted especially for this British edition to shorten the story, see the return of Black Bolt to the tale in the panel below. But on closer inspection of this tale in an Ultimate Graphic Novel I own, it became very apparent that a number of pages had been edited out to quicken the pace, making it fit into the allotted page count in this comic better. 

I feel that if all the removed pages from this and the previous two issues were kept in this story could have run for another week. Looking at the original artwork I also suspect that towards the end of the story some of it was rushed. The Marvel.Fandom.com wiki notes that as well as Syd Shores, Frank Giocola and John Verpoorten also worked on inking the finished art, maybe to reach the deadline and share the work load. This may well be the reason for the dips in quality and style, but I have to say on the whole it's been a pretty good three weeks worth of comic story with lots of twists and turns and massive fist fights between the Hulk and the Evil Inhumans, Hulk and the Inhumans, Hulk and Black Bolt, then the Hulk with Black Bolt against Maximus and the Evil Inhumans. There's a lot of fighting. 

The Hulk survives a sonic blast from Black Bolt at very close range and later a blast from a wrist ray gun created by Maximus using the substance found by Romnar, but fired by the rebellious Nebulo after the Evil Inhuman had rebelled against Maximus. You really don't know who is allied to who with those evil Inhumans, but anyway in this story the Hulk really gets a beating, which he survives without much effort. At the end Black Bolt allows the Hulk to leave the Great Refuge without any interference from the Inhumans to which the Hulk considering that he hopes one day he will find a city full of men like Black Bolt where he can find peace. "Until then he can only run, hide and hate!" 

The Mighty Marvel Mailbag 

 

First up for this weeks mailbag comes from John Sanderson from Leeds who writes in reply to a letter written by Katherine Donnaghie seen print in MWOM #47, from August, which was very scathing about Marvel and the "horrible Americans" who produce it. John makes five points in their defence and here they are...1) If she thinks Marvel is sickening, how does she think I felt reading her letter? 2) She hates the FF so much I got the impression Doc Doom is her boyfriend. 3) She says she only buys Marvel for the letters but, she knows so much about the characters in your comics. 4) I am glad you bought Marvel over to England because some of our comics are childish. 5) Finally the anti-Hulk Club is a farce. "Nuff said!" is the editor's reply but I want to add that in Katherine's case some people just like being the centre of attention with their opinions that feed on a reaction. And it looks like John's letter was it. Well good for him, it makes an interesting mailbag and I think we won't have heard the last of this. Colin Biggins from Barrow-in-Furness wants to know is there still chance to get any earlier membership kits from the Merry Marvel Marching Society (MMMS) as well as FOOM? Possibly the answer is no, but read to the end of this blog and there might be a way. Stephen Bulbage from Liverpool thinks Marvel is cool but wants to have some of the King Size Specials. They were on sale and there's a promise that UK editions will be coming soon. Anthony Clarke thinks the British Marvel comics are so much better than the DC comics he's seen. Alun Jones from Manchester says his friend Neil Page got him interested in MWOM and SMCW. Ian Woods from Plymouth took and copy of MWOM to camp once and a copy of SMCW to swimming to read on the bus ride and both of them got wet! Well Ian I hope you've learned your lesson and only read your comics at home where it's safe and dry. Nicky Russell from London suggests putting fact files on pages that could be pulled out in such a way as to not spoil the stories. Or at least I think that was his point as I suspect that he's letter was edited slightly. 

The Fantastic Four "...but it finishes on the Moon!"

Writer: Stan Lee 

Artist: Jack Kirby

Inker: Chic Stone 

Originally published in The Fantastic Four #29

Cover date August 1964

(Published in May 1964)

This opening splash page uses the cover of the Fantastic Four #29 as a recap showing the FF walking Yancy street in New York pensively although they have been kidnapped them marooned on the Moon by the Mad Ghost and his Super Apes. This weeks instalment shows that splitting some stories up into two halves can work really well. Where as last weeks story didn't fill me with joy this week's half skips along with a better pace making it more enjoyable.  

The FF survive the vacuum of space on the surface of the Moon with the help of the Invisible Girl's force field, enabling them to travel to the Blue Area where the Watcher lives in a breathable  atmosphere. The science may be a little suspect but this is a FF comic so let's go with it. The Watcher allows them to stay as he is forbidden to interfere, giving his reason to leave as his presence is needed in a far distant star system. A handy excuse from Uatu, so Reed finds a devise that can pull the Mad Ghosts ship down to the Moon's surface where the FF face off against the Ghost and his ape allies. The  Ghost is tricked into using an alien weapon that opens a portal to who knows where. According to Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z #9 he was teleported back to Russia where he was briefly incarcerated, going someway to explain how he appeared in last week's Avengers tale in Avengers #9 without his Super Apes, where he teamed up with the Mole Man against our heroes. The Super Apes escape in their ship back to Earth, although in FF Vol 2 #13 (that's the Future Foundation not Fantastic Four,) they show that they stayed on the Moon and only return to this time period at the conclusion of that issue. Speaking of returning, the Watcher returns and sends the Fantastic Four back to New York with Reed ending the tale with the line "Well if nothing else we did learn that there are some places even worse than Yancy Street!"

A short advert for more Marvel masterpieces, two great hits with this week's Avengers and Spider-man Comics Weekly mags. The back page from this weeks Might World of Marvel I'll leave till the end of this blog as it appears on all three comics. So till then let's look at our next mag.

Spider-man Comics Weekly #41

Another cover by Ron Wilson and Mike Esposito especially created for British Marvel. They could have used the John Romita Sr cover from the Amazing Spider-man #47, which was really good but this new cover was chosen instead. 

Spider-man "In the hands of the Hunter!"

Writer: Stan Lee 

Artist: John Romita Sr

Inker: John Romita Sr

Originally published in the Amazing Spider-man #47

Cover date April1967

(Published in January 1967)

This opening splash page by John Romita Sr is a beauty, showing the Green Goblin viewing a fight between Spider-man and Kraven the hunter that probably took place around the event seen in SMCW #7, which follows neatly from the Goblin's first appearance in the issue before that. The next page shows an encounter between Kraven and the Goblin's alter-ego Norman Osborn that could have took place around time of Kraven's third encounter with Spider-man in SMCW #25 off page. I love these "retellings" or "retconning" or whatever you like to call them, especially when they are done by the same writer and are near the original time period, they make an interesting world building process and give so much more to the reader. I don't like it when they are done decades later and they spoil the memories of those who read them at the time, but that's a story for another blog.

Kraven followed the Goblin's shady messenger who wanted him to defeat the web-slinger back to his home and discovered that he was Norman Osborn, but kept that a secret until a time he could use it for his own advantage. But as Kraven was defeated by Spider-man and sent to prison he never had the time to use it till now. Believing that the Goblin had died in a battle with Spidey, as seen in SMCW #34 when released from prison Kraven tries to get the money he is owed from the Goblins "go-between flunky" Osborn. Only breaking in to find him away.

Osborn is away on a business trip but first he visits his son Harry at his new apartment that he shares with Peter Parker, making a very strange scene as the friendly Norman greets Peter who is aware that the affable father was once the corrupt Green Goblin before the accident that caused him to have amnesia. Knowing the Norman Osborn of later Spider-man adventures, after he returned from the dead, I can't help but wonder did he have amnesia at all and was he just playing the long game? The 70's child side of me wants to believe he did so that these Stan Lee/Steve Ditko/John Romita Sr stories are kept pure in my heart and not ripped to shreds by lazier writers. 

Even though he's looking for Norman Osborn, without much success, Kraven still wants to have Spider-man's mask on his wall like a trophy. In the hope that he can once again have a rematch with the web-slinger Kraven has prepared a very un-jungle like weapon that could swing victory in his favour. A new double-barrelled ray that can stun his victim by "magnetising of his muscular electrolytes". Sounds like Stan Lee science.

Missing Osborn at his office and his home like any great hunter Kraven follows the trail to Norman's son Harry. But he's out with his new best friend and flatmate Peter at Flash Thompson's "Call up" leaving party, together with Mary Jane, Gwen Stacy, Flash and a gang of groovy uni students. MJ and Peter are having a great time dancing which causes Gwen to get in on the fun and hit the dance floor. It's a great page full of swinging sixties kids having fun. I do like to see Spider-man doing the swinging but I can't help love this Romita "love in". It's worth noting that earlier Peter was jealous of Harry when he call Gwen "his Gwen." but he's fine when he sees MJ on the dance floor. I guess Peter is truly spoilt for choice. Oh to be a teenager again.

With every party there's always a gatecrasher, this time it's Kraven the hunter, who has tracked down Harry in search of his father. Peter makes an exit, that he'll later excuse as he's looking to hire a camera to take photos of the incident. Spidey and Kraven battle in the fashion that every Spidey fan loves, page after page of hard hitting action. Norman Osborn rushes to the scene when finally hearing his butler's urgent summons after the number of times Kraven had appear at his home and office looking for him. When Norman does arrive, just after Kraven stuns the web-slinger with his new stun rays, the captured father knows nothing of his connection with the Green Goblin or his previous encounter with Kraven. Sensing that as far as he can tell Norman is telling the truth and the Goblin must have tricked them both. Kraven leaves as Spider-man saves a falling Osborn. Later Peter returns without the camera he says he's looking for, to wish Flash all the best in the army. This weeks story has been absolutely cracking. I think this Lee/Romita Sr period is at its best. Can't wait or next weeks adventure, seven more days for "The wings of the Vulture!" Be here, I definitely will! 

 

The Web and the Hammer

Micheal Ray from London reckons that baying SMCW is the best five pence you can spend. After reading this weeks stories I've got to agree. Nicky Packer (although his surname was spelt Packter on the letter page,) from Middlesex absolutely loves the Scorpion and wants to see Spider-man fight him again. Jonathan Blane from Hessle has spotted two mistakes in SMCW lately, the Grey Gargoyle says that his victim will stay under his stone spell for an hour, but later Don Blake says that the Gargoyle's spell will last for 24 hour's! Also issue 26 had the wrong "Week ending" date on the cover, it said August 4rd when it should have said August 11th. These two spotted mistakes earn him a "Mark II" No-Prize. Dean Hawsley from Hull gets both MWOM and SMCW every week and thinks that Electro is one of Spider-man's best foes. Ian Mellor from Manchester demands to be told the Green Goblin's secret identity. By now he should know. 

The Mighty Thor "Call him...Destroyer!"

Writer: Stan Lee 

Artist: Jack Kirby

Inker: Vince Colletta

Originally published in Journey into Mystery #118

Cover date July 1965

(Published in May 1965)

This wonderful splash page uses the cover of Journey into Mystery #118, drawn by Jack Kirby with inks from Frank Giocola. Kirby might not be everyone's cup of tea but I love seeing these majestic battle scenes from the King. In the story itself we join as the Destroyer, with his Odin bestowed powers and strength, lift Thor's hammer and strikes the Thunder God.  

This leads Loki to worry that he has gone to far, not expecting that a released Destroyer would be as powerful, contemplating that if the creature was to kill Thor the wrath of Odin would shake the very universe. He sets off to seek an audience with the All Father. However as the King of the Gods is taking his "OdinSleep" he cannot be disturbed. The Odinsleep is a ritual that Odin must endure for one full day every year in order to preserve his immortality. I have a similar ritual every weekend, which is probably why some of these blogs miss their deadline dates. Even us mortals need their sleep. Odinsleep always seems like a writers idea to make things harder for Thor, taking the big guy out of the equation at the right time. The battle rages on between the Destroyer and Thor, at one point the Destroyer slices off a corner of Thor's hammer with a deadly bolt of force from his fingers. I wonder will that get remembered next week. Things aren't looking good for the Thunder God, the Destroyer can even liquify the floor under his opponents feet and then solidify it entrapping Thor as his deadly adversary marches onwards. Will Thor survive? Same time next week to find out how this brilliant tale ends.  

Double dynamite from magnificent Marvel in this weeks advert for the Avengers and the Mighty World of Marvel for this in-house advert. The printers do seem to have misprinted the bottom left side of the advert, or was that effect intended?

Still no back page review in this blog? Keep reading I'll get to that later.

The Avengers #10

This week's cover of the Avengers is taken from the American edition issue 13, although the area behind the Avengers is white in the original, drawn by Jack Kirby with inks by Dick Ayers. Or at least that is what Marvel.Fandom.com says, were as the Grand Comic Database lists Chic Stone as the inker. I really can't decide who did the inking and haven't been able to get to the bottom of that mystery. 

The Avengers "Trapped in...the castle of Count Nefaria!"

Writer: Stan Lee

Artist: Don Heck

Inker: Dick Ayers

Originally published in The Avengers #13

Cover date February 1965

(Published in December 1964)

While doing my research for this issue I came across a little bit of trivia about this opening splash page that connects to the point I made last week on Giant Man featuring heavily on the last two opening pages. Apparently Jack Kirby drew Giant Man on this page, as least that's what Nick Caputo from the GCD says. I must agree with that because on closer inspection it does look different to the Don Heck artwork on the lower part of the page.

The story really starts with the Avengers becoming a thorn in the side of the world wide crime cartel known as Maggia, after they stop the theft of some fur coats. Stan Lee likes a good fur coat robbery, he's used that plot before. This brings the Avengers to the attention of the leader of Maggia, Count Nafaria, a European who was descendant from Italian nobility and was at the time a resident in Sicily. The Count decided to deal with the Avengers himself. So he took the extreme measure of moving his ancestral castle in Italy stone by stone, re-assembling it atop of a New Jersey hillside at incredible expense. Who says that crime doesn't pay. 
 

It's a bit of a low key story this week and I wasn't expecting much. But once I re-read this story I found it to be a refreshing change. The Count invites the Avengers to visit his newly located castle as part of a charity event, where he uses bright lights to render our heroes asleep while he employs life-size holographic images of them to declare war on the US. Once the Avengers leave Nefaria's castle they are attacked by the army. Realising they have been framed they return to face the many traps and well trained men the Count has set for them. 

As you can imagine the Avengers with their  strength and skills are no match for the crime cartel, defeating the Count and his men while obtaining evidence from him to prove their innocence. The US General who is there to hear the Count's confession inform's them that Nafaria will be deported at once. To which he pleads that he can't go back as the Maggia punishes failure. But who is above the Count in the Nafaria family? Maybe the other heads of the Maggia family perhaps. The story ends with some tragedy as Rick Jones presents the Wasp with a critically injury caused by a stray bullet from her helping save Rick and the Teen Brigade, leading nicely into next week's adventure. 

Avengers Unite!

Keith Mottram from Sutton Coldfield thinks that the Avengers are not only super-tough but are also super-intelligent, making them more than enough for any super-villain. Jenny Woods from Macclesfield can't find the words to describe the "lilting lettering, aristocratic artwork and wondrous word balloons" in issue 2 of the Avengers, although she just did. Mike Woodham from Somerset also thinks that the art and story in issue 2 was "simply Marvel-ous!" Sadly he missed issue 1 though. Howard Baker from London is fascinated by the inclusion of Captain America into the Avengers, as he once read some World War II stories featuring the good Captain and would like to see some more. 

After reading Issue 2 of the Avengers weekly Robin Matthews from Chester wants to see an Avengers Annual this year. Sadly he won't get that in his Christmas socking. If he's lucky he might have gotten the Marvel Annual 1974, published by Fleetway, from Father Christmas, no Avengers in that but there's a Giant-Man and the Wasp story inside that festive treat. Robin will have to wait till the Autumn of 1974 to buy the first British Avengers Annual, cover dated 1975. John Matt from Fareham enjoys all three weeklies, but has an issue with the replies to many of the questions letter writers ask, he says the comics are getting better and better, while the answers are getting sillier and sillier. John I think they're just dodging the question really. Finally for this week does Arthur Thirsk from Glamorgan get a dodgy reply to his question? He's noticed that Prince Namor's name is Roman backwards and wonders is Namor descended from the Romans? The reply he gets is that Namor's ancestors were around long before the Romans, but could the Romans be descended from Namor's forefather? I wonder could it have been a clever bit of creative thinking from the original Prince Namor writer? 

Doctor Strange "Witchcraft in the Wax Museum!"

Writer: Stan Lee 

Artist: Steve Ditko

Inker: Steve Ditko

Originally published in Strange Tales #121

Cover date June 1964

(Published in March 1964)

I won't be breaking any spoilers when I tell you that Baron Mordo returns in this tale, even with him in the shadow it's clearly the Baron and anyway there's a arrowed text box with his name on it above his head. Doctor Strange in his astral form,  answers a call for help that turns out to be a hoax. On return to his Sanctum, he discovers his body has been stolen. The Baron contacts him, explaining that he stole the body, knowing that Strange would perish if he spends too much time outside his physical form.

Mordo summons some ectoplasmic warriors to slow down the Doctor's search for his body, but eventually he tracks his physical form to a wax museum, where it has been put on display, shielded from the sorcerer with a spell. When Mordo attacks in person, Strange possesses one of the wax sculptures to attack his opponent, subduing and gagging the evil Mordo so that he can't cast a spell, and so forcing Mordo leaves his body in astral form. At this point I kind of wonder would it not make more sense for the Baron to wait in his physical form until the Doctor perishes? Then hope someone finds him in the morning and unties him? These evil fiends aren't very bright. 

Mordo and Strange battle on the Astral plane where the Baron uses all his powers to defeat the Doctor. Thinking he has emerge victorious he tries to return to his own form but Strange had tricked him into fighting an image he had conjured, leaving a weakened Mordo trapped in a mystical shield preventing him from returning to his natural body. With Mordo defeated, Strange returns to his own physical body. He leaves the Baron on display in the Wax Museum to a fate that he had intended for Strange. Does the Doctor intend that Mordo die? Of course he doesn't but it just goes to show how dark Ditko intended the character of Doctor Strange to be. I'm not sure who wrote the last line, whether it was Lee or Ditko, but it seems to have been added to soften the character a little as Doctor Strange states that "And always I be armed with the knowledge that evil can never triumph over the force of good!" It's a great story, maybe a little bit of its time, but still great.

What a catch!

I've saved this till last as it appears on the back page of all the British Marvel mags this week. The readers chance to a win pile full of fishing tackle goods and other surprises too. The first prize in this contest is a Gladding Intrepid rod with a Supertwin real and line, worth £13.60. The runner up would have won a 12 foot rod worth £6.95 while the third place winner gets a Supertwin reel worth £6.50. Then just for kicks the next twenty entries are awarded a Gladding Boyd reel worth 99p each. As this competition is run in conjunction with the Angling Times fifty FOOM members will be awarded Kingfisher Guild membership for free. The Kingfisher Guild being the Angling Times own junior club. If you're already a Kingfisher member, who's first fifty correct answers are pulled out of the draw, will receive membership to Marvel's FOOM! Don't ask me what happens if you're a member of both, hopefully the next in the line would get the Guild or the FOOM membership. All you had to do is show your knowledge of headless fish and headless heroes by reuniting the silhouette of a head to the correct silhouette of a body. Sounds a bit creepy but it's only a bit of fun. Anyway to me the heroes are easy, as a fisherman's son I should also know the first two fish silhouettes. Without looking it up I think one's a pike and one's a perch. No doubt my brother will correct me later. I'll not say the answers to which head and body is which, I'll let you guess for yourself. Oh yeah you have to collect next weeks second coupon to complete your entry. The competition ends on the 4th December 1973, so I guess we're all a bit late but have fun anyhow.

So if that's "caught" your imagination,  come back next week and we can "fish" out some more tasty bits of nostalgia from British Marvel in November 1973. 

See you in seven.

Make Mine Marvel.