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Post by MDG on Jun 14, 2015 16:24:01 GMT -5
There actually is a Glenville, New York, but it's upstate, not on Long Island. Cei-U! I summon Rand and McNally! Stan might've been basing it on Glendale on Long Island, but not wanting to use too specific a place name.
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Post by Nowhere Man on Jun 14, 2015 22:58:39 GMT -5
Journey Into Mystery #89Cover Date: February, 1963 Credits
Script: Stan Lee (plot); Larry Lieber (script) Pencils: Jack Kirby Inks: Dick Ayers Colors: Unknown (Stan Goldberg?) Letters: Ray Holloway GCD Synopsis: A gangster, wounded in an escape, has his men kidnap Dr. Blake to operate on his gunshot wound. Blake transforms himself into Thor and brings the gang to justice and rescues Jane as well. First Appearances: Thug Thatcher Comments: Just when you thought Thor couldn't possible take on an opponent even more beneath him than communists, look out, because here comes Thug Thatcher! I did like the sequence where Thor, seeking to protect his secret identity, dresses up a manikin in quickly assembled fabrics, that are perfectly assembled to look like his costume, only to hurl it from the window to make it seem like he was flying away. We also learn that Thor has super-ventriloquism when he uses it to distract Thug Thatcher. Unfortunately, there well be a few more issues of these rather mediocre quasi-Superman tales until we get to JIM #97 when Lee and Kirby find their stride on the title by bringing in a much needed injection of Norse Mythology into the Thor mythos with the fantastic Tales of Asgard backup feature. I'm not sure about the details of the production of this issue, but it is interesting that the cover is a generic Thor pose as opposed to a cover the gives a glimpse at the interiors. This is one of the very few covers that's done this so far in the early Marvel Age. Character Development: None of note. Unless we consider the manikin sequence as evidence that Thor has a rather strange sense of humor? Personal Rating/Historical Importance: 4/4. Not a very good Thor adventure, nor was it an important one. The next six or seven issues are so are some of my least favorite Thor comics, but like I've mentioned above, those are followed by a run of comics so grand that they rival the FF and Spider-Man in quality. I can't wait to read them again. *rubs hands together*
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Post by wildfire2099 on Jun 14, 2015 23:18:07 GMT -5
I'll agree with ya here.. that was a pretty terrible issue.... definitely felt like a golden age Superman tale with Thor and Jane pasted over Superman and Lois.
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Post by Nowhere Man on Jun 15, 2015 0:12:50 GMT -5
Golden Age probably would be more accurate. There weren't many gangsters being used at DC in the Silver Age. I give Kirby a pass on most of these stories for the simply fact that he was just doing too many layouts during this formative period. Don Heck taking over the Ant-Man/Giant-Man, Iron Man and Avengers titles certainly helped Kirby's workload and it's little wonder that the quality of Kirby's stories greatly increased.
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Post by Nowhere Man on Jun 15, 2015 4:14:09 GMT -5
Strange Tales #105Cover Date: February, 1963 CreditsScript: Stan Lee (plot); Larry Lieber (script) Pencils: Jack Kirby Inks: Dick Ayers Colors: Stan Goldberg Letters: Artie Simek Synopsis: The Wizard hatches a plan to escape prison by becoming a model inmate. Using his special privileges to gain access to chemicals, he mixes up a formula and uses it to dissolve the prison wall. Using the dissolved wall as a distraction, the Wizard escapes out the front entrance and heads back to his high-tech estate. After the police arrive and are unable to gain entrance, the Wizard once again issues a challenge to the Torch. Ignoring his sister Sue Storm's protests, he heads off to do battle with the villain. After the Torch defeats several of his traps, the Wizard's detects an intruder in another room. Discovering that the Invisible Girl has followed the Torch, he imprisons her in room with a timed explosive. Tricking the Torch into entering the room, the Wizard explains that the bomb is set to go off if the room's temperature rises by a single degree. The Torch manages to melt the mechanism and hurl the bomb away from the estate with his flame powers. The Wizard attempts to escape, but the Torch easily apprehends him. The police take the Wizard back into custody and the Torch and Sue return home, triumphant. First Appearances: None Comments: For a Human Torch adventure, this little tale isn't that bad. Of course this IS a Human Torch/Strange Tales romp so you know there will be Silver Age goofiness afoot. What exactly is the deal with the ubiquity of idiotic prison warden's in the Marvel Universe? Why would they ever entertain the idea of giving super-genius level villains access to chemicals and technology of any kind? This is the sort of bonehead administrative behavior that made things like The Vault an absolute priority. If they would have exercised a bit of common sense it would have saved the tax-payers of the MU a lot of tax dollars in funding super-villain correctional facilities. One of the prime directives of the Comic Code Authority was to never undermine legitimate authority like the police, but the creators of this era still found clever ways to do just that. The Wizard makes the guards look like fools as they rushed out the hole he made in the wall. He simply stood close to wall and slipped out the front. *facepalm* Johnny's powers are perplexing to say the least. He doesn't seem to be able to maintain his full flame for very long at all when he's in action (Who knows how long?) but he can maintain a perfect duplicate of himself for hours while he's miles away fighting a villain? Come on, guys. The art in this story is top notch for this period, however. I particularly like how Kirby draws the Wizards grotesquely exaggerated, elongated, face. The stories might be on average mediocre, but the art is just as good as that seen in the FF during this time. Character Development: We see a bit more of the older sister/baby brother dynamic at play at the beginning and end of the story. I particularly liked Sue playfully throwing a pillow at Johnny when he playfully mocks her "helping" him during their adventure. While the Wizard has potential (as later stories will show) he's still in need of a major upgrade. As of now he's a weirdo in a green jumpsuit who's gotten his ass handed to him twice, quite easily, by a hot-headed teenager. Paste-Pot Pete gave the Torch a better fight...and actually got away! Personal Rating/Historical Importance: 5/5. I enjoyed this story enough to rate it average. It's another encounter with the Wizard, so that's good enough to keep things moving a bit.
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Post by Nowhere Man on Jun 15, 2015 6:05:55 GMT -5
Tales to Astonish #40 Cover Date: February, 1963 Credits
Script: Stan Lee (plot); Larry Lieber (script) Pencils: Jack Kirby Inks: Sol Brodsky Colors: Stan Goldberg Letters: Artie Simek Synopsis: A criminal known as the the Hijacker is robbing the payroll shipments of armored truck company owner, Howard Mitchell. Ant-Man learns of this through his insect network and devises a plan to capture the crook. He instructs Mitchell and the authorities to announce the next shipment as he plans on tagging along to stop the Hijacker when he strikes next. Right before the shipment is set to depart, Ant-Man seemingly becomes ill and has to back out of the plan. The shipment is attacked by the Hijacker, but after the criminal knocks out the guards with gas, the Ant-Man arrives on the scene to his astonishment. After a brief altercation, the Ant-Man defeats the Hijacker by tearing off his protective gas-mask, knocking him out with his own gas attack. It's then revealed that the Hijacker was really Howard Mitchell, who decided to start stealing his own shipments because of a downturn in business. Ant-Man deduced this by connecting the Inca statues in Mitchell's office to the gas attack method of the Hijacker and faked his illness so that the Mitchell wouldn't expect him. First Appearances: Hijacker (Howard Mitchell) Comments: This story is basically a rehashing of the plot of TTA #37 with cosmetic changes. Yet again we have a business owner who turns to crime, robbing his business' (this time his own) in a mad scheme to get ahead. You have to wonder if the writers of the original Scooby Doo cartoon series were influenced by these kinds of comic book plots? We also can't help but wonder why Ant-Man continues to fire himself from a miniature cannon (that somehow can reach any part of the city he needs it to) to land on a mound of ants (Who knows how many he's injured? Poor little guys.) when he has access to miniature airplanes as we see in this issue. I can see how it would be fun, but the creators have him overshoot his mark and almost splat against a wall in this story. Perhaps this odd behavior, and his seeming disregard for his own safety, and the safety of his insect pals, made it easier for later creators to paint him as being mentally unstable? Kirby again gives us little glimpses at Pym's impressive tech, but I didn't quite like the art as much inked by Brodsky as I do inked by Ayers. Who knows who exactly is coming up with these tired plots (Lee or Kirby?) but it's clear for all to see that the strip needs a lot more creativity and effort if it's ever going to improve. Character Development: None of note. Given the Inca statue reveal, Pym apparently finds time to read his National Geographic in-between creating shrinking formulas and evil killer robots.
Personal Rating/Historical Importance: 4/4. It's not terrible enough to rate a very low score, but it's less than average given the retreading of old plots. The Hijacker is obviously a one-off "villain" so nothing of note is added to Ant-Man's world.
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Post by Nowhere Man on Jun 20, 2015 1:39:24 GMT -5
Amazing Spider-Man #1 Cover Date: March, 1963 Credits: Script: Stan Lee Pencils: Steve Ditko Inks: Steve Ditko Colors: Stan Goldberg Letters: Jon D'Agostino [as Johnny Dee] Synopsis: In part one of a two-part issue, we are re-introduced to Spider-Man with a brief retelling of his origin. With Uncle Ben now deceased, Peter Parker and his Aunt May must now find some way to make ends meet. Peter decides that his best course of action is to go back to performing as Spider-Man, but his career in entertainment runs into a snag when he realizes that he can't cash his checks using his real name without revealing his secret identity. This all becomes moot when Peter learns that J.J. Jameson, publisher of the Daily Bugle, starts a smear campaign against him, effectively turning the public against Spider-Man and making it impossible for him to perform. Frustrated, Parker finds himself at the launching site where John Jameson, J.J. Jameson's son, will be test piloting an orbital mission. Disaster strikes when the capsule Jameson is in loses its guidance systems and begins plummeting to Earth. The military has a replacement part, but is incapable of getting it to the capsule in time. Parker quickly changes to Spider-Man and announces to the military that he'll save Jameson if given the chance. The military agrees, seeing no other options, but J.J. Jameson protests. Spider-Man forces his way on to a jet field and subduing the guard, then convinces a pilot to fly him in a plane to the capsule. Spider-Man succeeds in restoring the guidance module to the plane, thanks to a daring midair use of his web-shooters, saving Jameson in the process. Parker is elated with his success and quickly hurries away from the scene, not wanting to have to face all the praise that's sure to come his way. However, after reading the next morning’s paper, Peter discovers that J.J. Jameson publishes an article claiming that Spider-Man sabotaged the capsule and used the incident as a way to gain fame and notoriety, causing public outrage against Spider-Man to be greater than ever. In part two, Peter Parker attempts to join the Fantastic Four as Spider-Man. Entering the Baxter Building through a window, Spidey has a brief confrontation with the FF until Mr. Fantastic demands an explanation. Spider-Man explains that he wants to join the FF and then begins asking questions about pay. The FF explain that they’re a non-profit organization, and after bringing up Spider-Man’s questionable reputation with the law, Spidey leaves in a huff before they can say another word. Unbeknownst to Spider-Man, a villain by the name of the Chameleon learns of his visit to the FF through the news. Speculating that Spider-Man must be seeking employment, he devises a scheme to frame him for a crime he’s about to commit. Tuning in on Spider-Man’s danger sense, he tells him to meet him at the Lark building at 10pm to hear his offer. However before Spider-Man arrives, the Chameleon impersonates the hero and steals a set of valuable plans, intending to sell them to communist spies. When Spider-Man arrives he’s confronted by the police, but having seen the helicopter that the Chameleon escaped in, he deduces that he’d be set-up and sets off to capture the real crook. Spider-Man tracks down the Chameleon’s copter and brings him back to the police, but the Chameleon attempts to escape by impersonating one of the cops. Spider-Man apprehends to Chameleon, but when the Chameleon exclaims that Spider-Man is the phony, the police attempt to capture him. Furious at the mix-up, Spider-Man flees the scene, having had enough. Unknown to Spidey, the police arrest the villain after they see that the Chameleon’s shirt is ripped, revealing the Spider-Man costume underneath. First Appearances: Chameleon, J.J. Jameson, John Jameson Comments: The fact that this comic's importance is incalculable is quite obvious, but the scary thing is that the comic being the first installment of Spider-Man's solo series isn't the most important part! At least alphabetically (the Hulk appears in this month's FF) this is the first issue where it's made crystal clear to the readers that the heroes from the new Marvel line of superhero comics exist in the same world. It's not "officially" the birth of the Marvel Universe, but in a lot of ways it is. By having the FF appear in Spider-Man, it instantly connects all of their supporting cast, villains, etc, to the same world Spider-Man lives in. That's pretty important stuff. This issue is also notable for introducing a character who I think is the greatest supporting character in the history of superhero comics: James Jonah Jameson (sorry, Lois). He'll go on to be brilliantly fleshed out by Stan and Steve, becoming one of the more psychologically complex supporting characters in the history of comics. No longer would one-dimensional background characters, seemingly without nuance, be seen as satisfactory to comic fans after J.J. Jameson's exploits. Overall, this is simply a great issue and clearly (at least to me) the best thing Marvel has released so far in the Marvel Age. No matter how many times I read this issue, I'm always hit with the palpable frustration that Peter Parker feels as Spider-Man fails to succeed in the public eye. It's genuinely heartbreaking how Aunt May refuses to entertain the idea of Peter quitting school, then goes off to pawn her jewelry. I can only imagine how revolutionary this was in 1963. We don't see the trademark humor yet from Stan's writing, but that can be forgiven at this formative stage. I don't think Ditko's artwork is quite up to the standards he'll achieve very shortly, but I've always loved the scenes where Spidey is attempting to place the guidance system on the space capsule. This is very well done and is the best aspect of the issue in terms of the art. Character Development: We see that Peter at least entertains the idea of turning to crime, but this is quickly dismissed. Peter is as much a hero as any of the paragons featured at other companies, but allowing this glimpse into his very human psychology only adds to the depth of the character and pays off big time down the line as he becomes a true hero. Personal Rating/Historical Importance: 8/10. This edges out Incredible Hulk #5 and Fantastic Four #6 as my favorite issue so far. Beyond the goof of calling Peter Parker, "Peter Palmer" in the second act, it's a damn near perfect first issue in terms of setting up a great new character. I've covered why it's so historically important above. This is simply one of the most important Marvel comics ever produced.
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Post by gothos on Jun 20, 2015 18:06:20 GMT -5
Fantastic Four #10Cover Date: January, 1963 Synopsis: Doctor Doom returns from his unwanted journey in space and visits Jack Kirby and Stan Lee in order to make them set a trap for the Fantastic Four. Doom tells how he managed to return to Earth with the help of the Ovoids and then he changes bodies with Mr Fantastic using Ovoid technology. Doom convinces the rest of the Fantastic Four that he is Mr Fantastic. Doom (as Mr. Fantastic) displays his new shrinking-ray and Mr. Fantastic (in Doom's body) escapes his captivity in Doom's castle. Doctor Doom and Mr. Fantastic get their bodies back and Doom is put under his own shrinking-ray and shrinks down to sub-atomic size. First Appearances: Stan Lee, Jack Kirby (of the Marvel Universe!) Comments: What a gloriously ridiculous and creative issue.... The art by Kirby and Ayers continues to improve. Hands down my favorite scene was the Thing struggling to hit Doom (really Reed) and not being able to do it. The way Kirby and Ayers clearly displayed the Thing wrestling with his emotions was masterful storytelling. The pin-up of the Invisible Girl (with Fantasticar details to boot) is probably my favorite pin-up so far. What kills me about this issue is when Doom (as Reed) traps Reed (as Doom) and thinks about how he only has enough oxygen to last an hour. Yet he (and the FF) have time to make it back to the Baxter Building, develop a shrink ray, procure a bunch of animals to test it on, argue for a while, and ultimately make it back to Doom's before the air runs out. As a writer, Stan could've used a good editor. But I agree on the art and continuing development of characters--really, it's a lot more interesting than the "comicbook" plots. And I love how Kirby draws "evil Reed," like on the cover. Was Doom even trying to fool them? I dunno-- I'm not denying that Stan messed up on time on his own-- but this seems like a Kirby mistake that Stan just took and ran with. Is it really reasonable that Reed/Doom. assuming he was imprisoned at night, would have survived in that airtight chamber for 9-12 hours before the morning newspaper came out? I don't think Kirby tended to think about such things, even less than Stan. I'm reminded of the incident in FF #2 where the Torch infiltrates the Skrulls, gets exposed, shoots his flare out the window, and then gets rescued so quickly that his partners can only have been camping the building's doorstep.
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Post by Nowhere Man on Jun 23, 2015 3:38:32 GMT -5
I have FF #12 read and I'll be writing the review in the morning. I'm not going to over tax myself since I am reading other things at the moment (Post-Crisis Batman circa 1986-82, Batman Adventures, Uncle Scrooge and of course the current series I follow.) but I do want to pick up my pace a bit and keep a steady flow going. From now, unless unavoidably restricted, I'm going to read and review at minimum one issue a day. By issue, I mean the standard 22-24 pages worth of material. Tales to Astonish, Tales of Suspense and Strange Tales only count as half, so when I get to those I'll simply read two of those comics.
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Post by Nowhere Man on Jun 23, 2015 7:40:40 GMT -5
Fantastic Four #12 Cover Date: March, 1963 Credits
Script: Stan Lee Pencils: Jack Kirby Inks: Dick Ayers Colors: Stan Goldberg Letters: Artie Simek Synopsis: General Ross asks the Fantastic Four to find and destroy the Hulk as his base was victim of a saboteur and the Hulk is the only suspect. The Fantastic Four attended a briefing at the base in New Mexico. There, they meet Bruce Banner and his assistant, Karl Kort, to discuss how to stop the Hulk. Rick Jones identifies Karl Kort as the saboteur. Kort learns this, and kidnapping him by gunpoint, brings Rick into the underground caverns where the Hulk and the Fantastic Four are searching for him. The Hulk and the Fantastic Four confront one another, and after the Hulk briefly stuns the rest of the group, he goes one-one-one with the Thing. The fight is cut short when Kort hits the Hulk with an atomic ray gun. The Thing and a recovered Invisible Girl locate Kort and the giant robot he used to cause destruction at the base. The Thing destroys the robot and after subduing Kort, the Fantastic Four find that the Hulk had recovered and fled the scene. Finally, Thunderbolt Ross holds a ceremony in the Fantastic Four’s honor. First Appearances: The Wrecker (Karl Kort) Comments: Along with Amazing Spider-Man #1, this issue of the FF is the first true Marvel crossover between characters that have their own titles. Not only that, but this is the first time we see the Thing go toe-to-toe with the Hulk, which is without question THE classic standing rivalry between long established “heroes” in the Marvel Universe. Beyond these two huge milestones, the issue itself is as good as anything we’ve seen so far from Marvel. A particularly exciting element of this issue is that we get to see the upgraded Fantasticar for the first time. Reed even mentions in the story that the fans wrote in saying that the original looked too much like a flying bathtub and that was the main reason for the upgrade. This certainly seems to show that fans had a lot more power back in those days to influence creators. It’s interesting to compare that level of creator/reader interaction to today’s world where, even though creator/reader interaction is daily thanks to the internet, most modern creators would never entertain the idea of allowing their stories to be openly influenced by readers in this way. Stan seemed particularly sharp when writing the Thing in this issue. I think the combination of being mistaken for the Hulk, and the Hulk himself as an opponent, brought out some of the best, and funniest, Thing temper tantrums and comments yet. Jack and Dick continue to impress with the art. I've always liked the page where we see the FF view footage of the Hulk, seeing him for the first time. Character Development: The Thing shows several times that he’s still annoyed by people who are openly shocked by his appearance. We also get yet another “meant well” scene where Sue’s lack of utility in combat is brought up: Doh! I suppose the attempt at making progress on an issue is better than no attempt at all… I get that nobody wanted to see Sue get hit or take her lumps, but you still have to wonder why Sue couldn’t punch a few bad guys now and then. Personal Rating/Historical Importance: 8/9. This is an excellent issue of the FF. The only issues so far that rival it are the Sub-Mariner and Dr. Doom appearances. As mentioned above, this issue is highly important historically. I considered giving it a 10, but held back only because the more important Amazing Spider-Man #1 came out this same month.
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Post by Nowhere Man on Jun 25, 2015 0:30:08 GMT -5
Incredible Hulk #6 Cover Date: March, 1963 CreditsScript: Stan Lee Pencils: Steve Ditko Inks: Steve Ditko Colors: Stan Goldberg Letters: Art Simek Synopsis: The story begins with the Hulk being hounded by the army while attempting to return his cavern lab. Before the Hulk is forced into action, the soldiers are recalled to base by an alarm. An alien known as the Metal Master, who has complete mental control over all forms of metal, is attacking. Meanwhile, Banner finds that each time he uses the gamma ray machine to transform back and forth into the Hulk, he becomes weaker and weaker. Seeing the alien attacking the military base on his view screen, Banner is joined by Rick Jones and heads off to transform into the Hulk once again. This time, however, the machine causes him to have the body of the Hulk but the face of Bruce Banner. Donning a Hulk mask that Banner made, the Hulk heads off to do battle with the alien. The Hulk holds his own, but is defeated and rendered unconscious. Soldiers arrive and takes off the Hulk’s mask. Luckily, he’s face transformed back into the Hulk’s by this time, saving his secret identity. General Ross has the Hulk imprisoned in a specially designed solid stone cell. The Hulk mistakenly thinks that Rick Jones betrayed him and vows revenge. The Metal Master begins his conquest of Earth, easily dispatching all weapons thrown against him, including missiles and jets. The Hulk escapes his prison and returns to his lab, and finding Rick Jones there, reverts back to Banner. Banner has a plan to stop the Metal Master and Rick Jones forms the Teen Brigade, a group of teenage ham-radio enthusiasts, in part to help stop the alien. Banner, as the Hulk, assembles a large gun with the help of the Brigade and heads off to challenge the Metal Master. Unable to affect the non-metallic gun, the alien falters and the Hulk defeats him, forcing him to repair all the damage he’s done and leave Earth forever. Character Appearances: Hulk [Bruce Banner]; Rick Jones; Betty Ross; General Thunderbolt Ross; Teen Brigade (introduction); Metal Master (introduction, villain) Comments: The final issue of the Hulk’s first run is a mixed bag. The villain is certainly a step up from what Stan and Jack have given him to fight so far, but the logic and anticlimax to the story seems like a bit of letdown from what was otherwise a decent plot. The first thing that a modern reader probably thinks is, “Why don’t they bring out a wooden catapult and be done with this guy?” This probably wouldn’t have been an issue if he had any noticeable form of defense, like force fields, similar to Magneto. It goes without saying that the Metal Master comes off as being incredibly stupid given how easily he was tricked by the phony gun. Stan and Steve are just too good for something so silly. Still, there are things to like about this issue. The Metal Master certainly had cool powers and you have to wonder how he relates to Magneto creation. Rick’s portrayal was more interesting in this issue as we get to see a little teen angst and pro-activity in forming the Teen Brigade. Stan’s writing is par for the course as far as his Hulk scripts have gone. I have no real issue with his writing beyond the vapid portrayal of Betty Ross. All she does is stand around wondering aloud about Bruce Banner, ad nauseam. Stan is struggling early on in these stories to portray females, particularly love interests, in most of the titles he’s writing with the exception of Amazing Spider-Man. I like Steve Ditko’s art in this issue, even though it’s a bit jarring after the Kirby issues. He does a pretty good job of portraying most of the characters, though his Hulk face isn’t to my liking. Kirby’s simply had more personality. Amusingly, there still seems to be some disconnect as to whether or not the Hulk can fly. He makes a mid-air turn, while supposedly leaping, that boggles the mind and defies physics at the same time: Character Development: The Hulk continues to fluctuate between reluctant hero and bitter monster. In retrospect this probably played a part in the initial failure of the series. There really wasn’t much to latch onto with the Hulk since he was so unfocused and chaotic psychologically. As I mentioned before, his initial incarnation with like the Thing only without the nuance and likability. This is a problem I’ve had with recent versions of the Hulk; there isn’t much to care about. He’s not the lovable classic savage Hulk we’ll see in a few years, nor is he the love-to-hate him anti-hero gray Hulk of the Peter David years. Personal Rating/Historical Importance: 5/7. Given its flaws, I can’t rate the issue higher than average. Historically, I give it higher marks than it would have gotten as just another issue because, well, this is the final issue of the Hulk’s initial run. It also introduces the Teen Brigade, which will be instrumental in the formation of the Avengers. That’s significant.
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Post by kongat44 on Jun 25, 2015 1:18:18 GMT -5
This is a great thread, thanks for putting so much work into it. Now, onto marvel, yes, we have some groundbreaking issues here, not just with the crossing over of characters, but so far, with the exception of Amazing Fantasy #15, this has been strictly a Lee/Kirby production, now for the first time we are getting comics drawn by others, to enrich this new universe. Kirby of coarse is doing the FF, and Thor, Ditko produces the last Hulk, with the first non Kirby super hero cover, as well as Spidey #1, while Done Heck tackles the brand new Iron Man, Yes, this is really quite a month for Marvel, maybe not the beginning, but the start of the blossoming for sure. Thanks again for the post.
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Post by Nowhere Man on Jun 25, 2015 6:32:16 GMT -5
Thanks for the appreciation. I'm definitely going to go as far as Kirby's last issue of FF, but after that I'd like to continue into the Bronze Age. At that point I'd probably just pick a single character and go from there. With Marvel Unlimited, my DVD-ROM's and various collected editions, I pretty sure I can cover most of the big name characters throughout the 70's.
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Post by Nowhere Man on Jun 26, 2015 3:03:07 GMT -5
Journey Into Mystery #90 Cover Date: March, 1963 Credits
Script: Stan Lee (plot); Larry Lieber (script) Pencils: Al Hartley Inks: Al Hartley Colors: Stan Goldberg (though this isn’t conclusive) Letters: Terry Szenics Synopsis: The heir to the throne of a race of shape-shifting aliens known as the Xartans leads an attack on Earth as his rite of passage. The aliens replace officials in New York and disrupt the government, but Thor discovers their plan and defeats them. Character Appearances: Thor [Doctor Donald Blake]; the Carbon-Copy Man [Zano] (introduction); Jane Foster; War Lord Ugarth [Old Ugarth] (introduction); Mayor Harris (introduction); Odin (cameo) Comments: I’m not going to beat around the bush here; this is not only the worst issue of Thor’s JIM adventures so far, it’s the worst issue of the Marvel Age, hands down. The art by Al Hartley is horrible. It’s as close to being objectively bad as art can get. This looks like a rushed Golden Age comic for Pete’s sake! The terrible art is bad enough, but the story, featuring some of the most uninspired aliens imaginable, is a slog to get through. The basic plot, a race of shape-changing aliens attempting to impersonate important citizens in a bid to conquer Earth with waiting armada in orbit, is a slight alteration to the plot of Fantastic Four #2. These aliens, beyond being inferior and redundant versions of the Skrulls, are ridiculous looking bronze-skinned dorks with buzz-cuts and absurd handle-bar mustaches. I mean…really? This issue makes Rob Liefield’s Marvel work look inspired by comparison. I’m sorry, this is my first really negative review, but I honestly feel this issue deserves it. It’s a bit startling that it wasn’t rejected given the standards Marvel would demand just a few short years from now. I suppose at this point they simply didn’t have enough material to get away with a reprint. If Hartley got the same page rate as Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko for this, it’s an insult. The next few issues are below par, sure, but nothing compared to this monstrosity. Joe Sinnott, the upcoming regular penciller for a few issue before Kirby’s return, is a fine artist, I just don’t think he was a good fit for Thor. I have no problem with his work beyond this style preference. This issue, on the other hand, is embarrassing. I mean no disrespect to Hartley as a human being, I simply had to be honest about the work itself. Character Development: There may have been some, or not, but I think I may have missed it because of the burning in my retina’s. Kidding. Kinda. There is no development here beyond Don Blake almost growing a pair and telling Jane how he feels. Actually he might have if Odin didn't decide to butt in. Maybe Odin simply didn't want Don to make such an important decision in such a lame ass issue of JIM? They do call him "All-Wise." Personal Rating/Historical Importance: 1/3. It’s hard to figure out how an issue like this should score on a historical basis, but I’m given it below average marks for rehashing a plot and coming up with lame, redundant, villains in the process. It also features an artist who, thankfully, would have little to do with the further development of the Marvel Universe. Nuff…ugh..said.
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Post by Cei-U! on Jun 26, 2015 7:02:18 GMT -5
This was an experiment on Stan Lee's part to see how Al Hartley--one of the mainstays of Marvel's teen humor line--handled super-heroes. It was blatantly obvious he had no feel for the genre whatsoever and Stan gave him no further assignments outside of the Millie the Model-Patsy Walker titles. One of Stan's rare miscues as Goodman's de facto art director.
Cei-U! I summon the oops!
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