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Post by EdoBosnar on Dec 1, 2021 17:31:52 GMT -5
Had about 15 or so titles this month. By far my favorite and the most memorable is JLA #200, described (and pictured) above by codystarbuck. A few other personal highlights: I'd already read the preview insert in New Teen Titans #16 from the preceding month, so I was completely on board for this. As I recall, it was a pretty entertaining series, although I think I stopped reading it about a year later. This digest was a great companion to the Doom Patrol story arc that had just concluded in New Teen Titans. I was so primed to learn more about the Doom Patrol so I ate this one up. Daredevil #181 was one of the key issues in the original Miller run. I still remember how shocking (and how effectively drawn) the final scene in the fight between Elektra and Bullseye was. Fantastic Four #240 contains an epic done-in-one story in which the Inhumans move their home to the Blue Area of the Moon. At this point, Byrne was firing on all cylinders.
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Roquefort Raider
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Dec 2, 2021 13:08:50 GMT -5
December 1981 Avengers #217 : Hank Pym gets arrested by the Avengers. That was a pretty interesting run, discussed by Crimebuster and Icctrombone in an excellent podcast (and go listen to it if you still haven't!) Conan #132 : each time we think the title has reached the bottom, it starts digging!!! Cimmerian Olympic games featuring giant monsters??? Oh, for Crom's sake! Crazy #83 : Big fan of Raiders of the Lost Ark, I just had to get this one. Meh. Defenders #105. I wasn't a huge fan of Mephisto being the same being as Satan, Satannish and (off-panel!) God. It's the kind of pseudo-deep revelation that a teenager writing his first fantasy story would come up with. Fantastic Four #240 : Oh, how I loved Byrne's Fantastic Four! It sometimes felt like he was trying to channel Kirby a little too hard for my taste, but the result was beautiful. Marvel Fanfare #1. It turns out that this was a title where inventory stories would pop up under the guise of special commissions by top-notch artists, but with people like Chris Claremont, Michael Golden, Terry Austin, Don McGregor Roger McKenzie and Paul Smith, you could have fooled me. I absolutely love this issue, and the glossy paper really made the art stand out. Micronauts #39. A Michael Golden cover is basically this issue's sole saving grace. Savage Sword of Conan #73. Full John Buscema art, which is always a plus. A fun, nonsensical adventure story. X-Men #155, continuing to make me believe that there would be life after Byrne/Austin. The Brood were great villains, and this cosmic-themed storyline was right up my alley!
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Post by chaykinstevens on Dec 2, 2021 16:41:11 GMT -5
Defenders #105. I wasn't a huge fan of Mephisto being the same being as Satan, Satannish and (off-panel!) God. It's the kind of pseudo-deep revelation that a teenager writing his first fantasy story would come up with. Was this retconned away later? Satannish was a separate character again (a green dude with a ridiculous looking second face in his belly) by the time of Steve Englehart's Hellcat mini-series, which tried to retcon Daimon Hellstrom to be the son of Satannish instead of Satan. Marvel Fanfare #1. It turns out that this was a title where inventory stories would pop up under the guise of special commissions by top-notch artists, but with people like Chris Claremont, Michael Golden, Terry Austin, Don McGregor and Paul Smith, you could have fooled me. I absolutely love this issue, and the glossy paper really made the art stand out. I think you mean Roger McKenzie not Don McGregor.
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Post by chaykinstevens on Dec 2, 2021 16:46:58 GMT -5
Bought new: All-Star Squadron #7 Arak, Son of Thunder #7 Avengers #217 Batman #345 Brave and the Bold #184 Captain America #267 Captain Carrot #1 Daredevil #181 DC Comics Presents #43 Defenders #105 Detective Comics #512 Fantastic Four #240 Iron Man #156 Ka-Zar the Savage #12 Legion of Super-Heroes #283 Marvel Tales #137 Marvel Team-Up #115 Master of Kung Fu #110 Micronauts #39 Moon Knight #17 New Teen Titans #17 Spectacular Spider-Man #64 Spider-Woman #43 Thor #317 Wonder Woman #289
Bought later: Epic Illustrated #10 Flash #307 Marvel Fanfare #1 Starslayer #2
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Roquefort Raider
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Dec 2, 2021 16:47:52 GMT -5
Crimebuster Defenders #105. I wasn't a huge fan of Mephisto being the same being as Satan, Satannish and (off-panel!) God. It's the kind of pseudo-deep revelation that a teenager writing his first fantasy story would come up with. Was this retconned away later? Satannish was a separate character again (a green dude with a ridiculous looking second face in his belly) by the time of Steve Englehart's Hellcat mini-series, which tried to retcon Daimon Hellstrom to be the son of Satannish instead of Satan. Oh, ye gods! More retcons! If I had to bet, I'd say that Defenders #105 was probably just ignored by everyone else. Besides, Daimon was later further retconned into being the son of some made-up demon (Marduk Kurios or something?) Oops! Absolutely. The Daredevil writer.
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Post by codystarbuck on Jan 1, 2022 15:05:00 GMT -5
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Post by chaykinstevens on Jan 1, 2022 16:04:06 GMT -5
Bought new: All-Star Squadron #8 Arak, Son of Thunder #8 Avengers #218 Captain America #268 Daredevil #182 Defenders #106 Doctor Strange #52 Flash #308 Ghost Rider #67 Green Lantern #151 House of Mystery #303 Justice League of America #201 Ka-Zar the Savage #14 Legion of Super-Heroes #286 Master of Kung Fu #111 Micronauts #40 Moon Knight #18 New Teen Titans #18 Phantom Zone #4 Uncanny X-Man #156 Unexpected #221 Warlord #56 Wonder Woman #290 World's Finest Comics #278
Bought later: Bizarre Adventures #30 Iron Man #167 King Conan #10 Marvel Team-Up #116 Thor #318 Peter Parker #65
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Post by EdoBosnar on Jan 1, 2022 16:29:59 GMT -5
Had about a dozen titles this month; most of the usual suspects like FF, X-men, Ka-zar, Daredevil, New Teen Titans, LoSH and so forth, but also this: Team America #1. I got this, and then dutifully bought all twelve issues until it was cancelled. To this day, I'm still puzzled as to why. I wasn't really into motorcycles, or any motor sports in general, the characters were all pretty generic and uninteresting, and the writing and the art were unremarkable. Even the ongoing, underlying mystery, i.e., "who is the Marauder?" (the black-clad guy in the background raising his fist), was not very compelling - and the revelation in the last issue kind of made me roll my eyes and think, 'Seriously?' It was just a sort of bland series all the way through.
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Post by codystarbuck on Jan 1, 2022 22:30:24 GMT -5
Had about a dozen titles this month; most of the usual suspects like FF, X-men, Ka-zar, Daredevil, New Teen Titans, LoSH and so forth, but also this: Team America #1. I got this, and then dutifully bought all twelve issues until it was cancelled. To this day, I'm still puzzled as to why. I wasn't really into motorcycles, or any motor sports in general, the characters were all pretty generic and uninteresting, and the writing and the art were unremarkable. Even the ongoing, underlying mystery, i.e., "who is the Marauder?" (the black-clad guy in the background raising his fist), was not very compelling - and the revelation in the last issue kind of made me roll my eyes and think, 'Seriously?' It was just a sort of bland series all the way through. I picked up the first three (I think) and the crossover with Captain America. The reason I picked it up was HYDRA, plus I loved watching Evel Knievel's stunts. It was yet another toy tie-in, for the line that replaced the Evel Knievel toys, at Ideal, after Knievel's assault charges and jail time. The only decent story was the crossover, from JM De Matteis, in Captain America.
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Post by EdoBosnar on Jan 2, 2022 4:37:43 GMT -5
I picked up the first three (I think) and the crossover with Captain America. The reason I picked it up was HYDRA, plus I loved watching Evel Knievel's stunts. It was yet another toy tie-in, for the line that replaced the Evel Knievel toys, at Ideal, after Knievel's assault charges and jail time. The only decent story was the crossover, from JM De Matteis, in Captain America. Their appearance in Captain America wasn't a crossover; it was, rather, their introduction - it even says "introducing Team America" on the cover of CA #269. As a regular reader of Cap, that's where I first saw them and that's what prompted me to pick up the first issue (although why I kept picking the series up is - as I said above - a mystery to me now). In fact, I think Mike's Newsstand mistakenly lists it as 'on sale' in January 1982: the cover date is June, and most other books with that cover date were on sale in February, not January. The story in Cap is fine - it was during the DeMatteis/Zeck run after all - but I think my favorite Team America story was their appearance in New Mutants after their series was cancelled, which tied up a few loose ends.
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Roquefort Raider
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Jan 2, 2022 16:12:36 GMT -5
Bought new in January 1982 (or received thanks to a subscription): Avengers #218, a fill-in with art by Don Perlin, replacing usual artist Bob Hall. I had subsccibed thinking I would get Perez’s Avengers… Conan #133. Gil Kane art with Danny Bulanadi inkining, a pairing I never liked, and a generic story. I kept reading that book hoping it would resume its past excellence eventually, but it would be a matter of years. Good thing comics didn’t cost much back then! Daredevil #182, the aftermath of the epic issue in which Elektra died (an issue I naturally missed, much to my chagrin at the time). I was heartbroken to learn that this new and interesting character had already shuffled off this mortal coil, but the issue was very good indeed. King Conan #10: what to do when Roy Thomas goes to DC and Conan books keep selling? You hire people to write generic sword and sorcery stuff. Which this is. Competent, but not a milestone. The Death of Captain Marvel graphic novel. Yes, by luck I managed to buy that when it came out. One of the few comic-book deaths that hasn’t been reversed since, probably a tribute to the quality of this particular book. Micronauts #40: more Gil Kane pencilling… and Bulanadi inking. To this day I don’t understand why editors thought the two men’s art styles were a good match. To me, they're like orange juice and salt & vinegar chips. Good apart, not so much together. Savage Sword of Conan #74, with really, really good art by Val Mayerik and a script by my favourite writer at the time, Chris Claremont. My review can be found here. Uncanny X-Men #156, with the rarely-seen (back then) Starjammers! I was exstatic! The Brood saga remains one of my favourite X-Men arcs of all. And like most such arcs, it should never have been revisited. The Brood should have been a one-time thing.
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Post by chaykinstevens on Jan 2, 2022 16:36:58 GMT -5
Avengers #218, a fill-in with art by Don Perlin, replacing usual artist Bob Hall. I had subsccibed thinking I would get Perez’s Avengers… Didn't Perez stop at #202? How long was your subscription?
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Post by kirby101 on Jan 2, 2022 16:57:15 GMT -5
Rougefort, I so agree with you on Kane and Bulandi, never looked good and the noses always looked funny. When Kane inked himself on Conan, it was great looking. My guess is Kane was a top freelancer and Bulandi was a cheaper inker.
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Post by berkley on Jan 2, 2022 17:06:33 GMT -5
Later acquired these....
I read the other Paradox issue but don't think I ever saw this one. In fact, I'm not sure I even knew there was a follow-up with the character. How was it?
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Post by berkley on Jan 2, 2022 17:09:08 GMT -5
Rougefort, I so agree with you on Kane and Bulandi, never looked good and the noses always looked funny. When Kane inked himself on Conan, it was great looking. My guess is Kane was a top freelancer and Bulandi was a cheaper inker. I always found Bulanadi too over-powering as an inker, something like Rudy Nebres. That can work if you really, really like the inker's style - e.g. Alfredo Alcala or Wally Wood - but otherwise, no.
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