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Post by Slam_Bradley on May 23, 2022 19:37:19 GMT -5
For what it's worth, my Aunt Petunia always enjoyed Marvel Two-in-One more than The Fantastic Four during the mid-late '70s.
Fun stories without the usual baggage of perpetual world-threatening melodrama. Yeah, another great callout on a team-up title, I think I agree with this one as well during that era. You've actually reminded me of something else FF related. I'm not sure if it surpasses the actual FF title, but I've been spending a lot more time with Strange Tales between 1962-1965. You've got the Human Torch run of course, but I also always liked the issues where the Thing shows up in particular. Add to that Doctor Strange's original run was in this title during that time, I've increasingly found enjoyment of the title during that period. Plus my favorite part of the actual FF title was starting more like 1965 around when Sinnott became the regular inker, so again, definitely some appreciation for Strange Tales prior to that. The Human Torch in Strange Tsles was the worst Marvel feature of its time. By a pretty significant margin.
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Post by Deleted on May 24, 2022 1:13:42 GMT -5
Yeah, another great callout on a team-up title, I think I agree with this one as well during that era. You've actually reminded me of something else FF related. I'm not sure if it surpasses the actual FF title, but I've been spending a lot more time with Strange Tales between 1962-1965. You've got the Human Torch run of course, but I also always liked the issues where the Thing shows up in particular. Add to that Doctor Strange's original run was in this title during that time, I've increasingly found enjoyment of the title during that period. Plus my favorite part of the actual FF title was starting more like 1965 around when Sinnott became the regular inker, so again, definitely some appreciation for Strange Tales prior to that. The Human Torch in Strange Tsles was the worst Marvel feature of its time. By a pretty significant margin. Those Strange Tales stories were whacky as heck, I love them! Johnny Storm trying to keep his identity a "secret", including trying to get away to flame on so nobody knows it's him even though he NEVER wears a disguise. And where else do we get to see the Thing with a Beatles wig: Dare I also mention possibly one of the most iconic character introductions of all time: "Battle bucket of paste"...legendary. I rest my case.
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Post by The Cheat on May 24, 2022 12:55:06 GMT -5
I love how he's flamed on with the wig on his head. Let me guess... asbestos?
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Post by Farrar on May 24, 2022 20:51:53 GMT -5
...
And where else do we get to see the Thing with a Beatles wig: ... Fantastic Four #34 ? Sorry, sorry; I couldn't resist (I know you were being rhetorical). But the ST story does reference the fact that Ben got the Beatles wig earlier (FF #34). A nice little bit of continuity, IMHO.
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Post by Deleted on May 24, 2022 21:58:55 GMT -5
...
And where else do we get to see the Thing with a Beatles wig: ... Fantastic Four #34 ? Sorry, sorry; I couldn't resist (I know you were being rhetorical). But the ST story does reference the fact that Ben got the Beatles wig earlier (FF #34). A nice little bit of continuity, IMHO. Oops, you’re totally right lol!!
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Post by Prince Hal on May 27, 2022 16:03:06 GMT -5
I thought for sure we'd see the Brave and the Bold pop up here by now, and now that I have a moment, I'll give that long-running title a shout-out. Super-Cat asked in the original post whether we ever found the non-flagship titles more interesting. I'd have to say that more often than not, B and B delivered more compelling, interesting and/or just plain entertaining Batman stories than Batman and Detective, especially in those fallow periods of the 70s and 80s when those latter two titles were usually no better than an average read. (The Engelhart-Rogers Detective run one of the exceptions.) Not neccessarily a nasty knock on those flagship titles. My guess is that it's easier -- and maybe more fun -- to write a team-up title, especially because continuity with the other two titles wasn't important. The different co-star every issue makes the story that much more fresh and different, and with time travel, parallel Earths and advanced science at the writer's disposal, a much wider choice of canvases and settings. Because the overwhelming majority of B and B stories were done in one and didn't leave a mark on continuity, the writer didn't have to fret so much. (Or not at all if the writer was Bob Haney or Robert Kanigher.) Then you also had the advantage every so often of using a new or not so well known character as Batman's teammate, which again meant some freedom as every little thing about the new guy wasn't set in stone. As a longtime B and B reader, I far preferred an underused or niche character as Batman's co-star. Seeing the Flash, Green Lantern, Wonder Woman and other JLA types or the Joker and the Riddler, who were forver popping up in the main titles was disappointing compared to seeing the likes of Scalphunter, Blackhawk, Nemesis, or Ragman. Obviously, the powers that were had to balance sales of reliable co-stars and the need to publicize new characters against the out-of-the-bok types, so I understood why they'd dip into the well of old reliables, but to me the beauty of the tile was the chance to see a character as adaptable to different genres as Batman was in a variety of different stories. It was Neal Adams who elevated B and B above the second-tier titles with his revolutionary approach to covers and interior art, and Nick Cardy added a number of standouts as well, but B and B was lucky to have had the great Jim Aparo as its primary artist for years and years. He established a standard of reliable excellence on B and B that you rarely see in any comic. A few cover highlights, courtesy Adams, Cardy and Aparo:
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Post by adamwarlock2099 on May 27, 2022 17:46:50 GMT -5
That B&B #93 cover is one my favorite covers ever. I bought it for the cover but ended up liking the story too.
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Post by tarkintino on May 27, 2022 20:05:31 GMT -5
It was Neal Adams who elevated B and B above the second-tier titles with his revolutionary approach to covers and interior art, and Nick Cardy added a number of standouts as well, but B and B was lucky to have had the great Jim Aparo as its primary artist for years and years. He established a standard of reliable excellence on B and B that you rarely see in any comic. Agreed across the board; Adams turned what was once a light team-up book into something to be taken as seriously as the solo books.
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Post by Deleted on May 28, 2022 8:55:03 GMT -5
I'd have to say that more often than not, B and B delivered more compelling, interesting and/or just plain entertaining Batman stories than Batman and Detective, especially in those fallow periods of the 70s and 80s when those latter two titles were usually no better than an average read. (The Engelhart-Rogers Detective run one of the exceptions.) In the late 80s, the UK got a reprint title, Batman Monthly, published by London Editions Magazines, part of Egmont. The first two issues reprinted The Untold Legend of the Batman, before switching to reprints of 70s and 80s tales. Some issues of TBATB were reprinted, too, so the editor clearly thought as you do. As do I.
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Post by tonebone on Jun 8, 2022 10:37:39 GMT -5
That last issue of B and B was incredible! Yet as cool as it was, with the Dave Gibbons art, I always felt a little sad that Jim Aparo didn't get a chance to properly "sign off" on the title he had artistically carried for so many years. He was really the heart and soul of the title, in my opinion.
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