I've been waiting for this one more than any other podcast episode thus far! Can't wait 'til I have a free hour to sit back and listen.

Thanks for letting me drone on! Sorry if I got a bit incoherent by the end: I live in Scotland, and the interview took place in the wee small hours. I am usually tucked up on bed with my teddy bear and Marvel Monsterbus long before that.

Crimebuster was a perfect host, and did all his homework ready for a battle royale, but I'm afraid that, like a coward, I sort of waved the white flag at the start. I'm not much of an arguer! When I get interested in a topic I tend to examine it in obsessive detail (that's why I felt I should write a book-length post), but then I get burnt out. Exhausted. I just have to get it out of my system, then it's almost forgotten because I'm onto something else. So I apologise if I don't reply much to this thread. I am grateful that anybody listens to the podcast or reads the book, but I really don't have much useful to add!


Yes, Michael is a regular on the "Jack Kirby Dialogue" and "Marvel Method" Facebook groups. He was invaluable in correcting some of my bigger errors regarding what happened in the 1950s. I am in awe of the amount of work Vassallo has done! To give just a taste, this is a photo he sent me of just part of one of the charts he made, showing every Goodman book ever published. 

The chart focuses on the crash of 1957: count how many titles suddenly stopped, with the rest becoming bimonthly. The chart is so big that it extends up his stairs!

Evanier also follows those Facebook forums, and occasionally replies when people need him to answer a specific question. But Evanier didn't start working for Kirby until 1969. I was most interested in what Kirby was doing in early 1961 and before, so I relied more on Vasallo. Evanier and Vasallo also have a difference in focus. Evanier is an expert on what Kirby said later, but of course memories can change, and memories only focus on the parts that seems important in a particular time. In contrast, Vasallo studied the primary documents, published at the time. So for example, the fact that Kirby said "I wrote it" is interesting, but being able to see what Kirby was actually producing before and after was much more interesting to me. 

But both of these approaches (memories and documents) are still historical in nature. My own interest is different again: I care if the story is interesting to me. Personally, I soon lose interest in who did what. What matters to me is that, for my personal tastes, Kirby's name on a comic, in any capacity, is the best guarantee I know that a story will be enjoyable to me, now, at age 49. 

At the end of the day I am just a kid looking for the kind of comics I like. And personally I love everything Kirby touched!

Your mileage may vary.

I agree! I haven't finished listening to all of this yet but what I've heard is very informative and interesting. Kudos to Crimebuster and tolworthy

Great stuff!

Tolworthy has a scholar’s voice, and the scholar’s knowledge to go with it! Fascinating analysis that nicely complements “The case for Kirby”.

Thanks so much for this guys. I've listened to all the podcasts so far and found this one to be just as interesting as all the others, even though I felt more familiar with this material than most of the rest. Great to hear your call out tolworthy, for the 1972 Uk Marvel Annual. Don't think it was my first exposure to Marvel (was Mighty World Of Marvel a little earlier?) but its the one that sticks there in my memory as the beginning of a life long interest. I'm sure I read and reread that book until it fell apart! (I recently tracked down a tatty copy on ebay - just to wallow in nostalgia for a little while). 

What a great podcast!  Appreciated the shout out to an under appreciated writer, Doug Moench, who in my opinion never gets enough credit as one of the top writers of the Bronze Age.  Also, great info, anecdotes, and insights from Tolworthy.  The podcast just flew by.  Hope there’s more discussion of the FF on the drawing boards, or any other subjects of interest Tolworthy holds to be frank.  Nice job!