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Post by LovesGilKane on Aug 4, 2017 4:16:45 GMT -5
I've always found this storyline to be the most significant misstep in the classic Fantastic Four run from #36 to #94. How come? Could you expand on why you consider it a misstep? To me, it read just like prime Lee/Kirby FF. And I'm not saying it doesn't have its charming Silver Age moments. But it sure isn't "This Man, This Monster!"! And yet, it has almost as much maudlin, self-pity from the Thing as that earlier story. I was really reminded of "This Man, This Monster!" as I read because Stan really goes lay Ben's self-loathing on pretty thick. Although there's a charming little scene in which a cop, a group of teenagers and a housewife all tell the Thing how much they love him and how much he means to them. gotta disagree. self-loathing is a bastard-child of 'quantitive/qualitive' depending on the deformity or life-harming genetic-'challenge' in question.
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Post by kirby101 on Aug 4, 2017 7:51:23 GMT -5
Just got the new Kirby FF Artist Edition. Contains all the original art for issues 33, 45, 47 and 60 as well as a hundred or so other pages and covers from the FF. These were all in the large original art format. Seeing the original art is truly a wonder. It includes a fold out of the original art for this, reproduced full size.
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Post by Cei-U! on Aug 4, 2017 7:52:15 GMT -5
Reed insisted on leaving Sue behind because he (and Stan and Jack) knew she was pregnant, as revealed in Fantastic Four Annual #5 two weeks after FF #67 hit the stands.
Cei-U! I summon the protective papa!
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Confessor
CCF Mod Squad
Not Bucky O'Hare!
Posts: 10,085
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Post by Confessor on Aug 4, 2017 19:37:45 GMT -5
Reed insisted on leaving Sue behind because he (and Stan and Jack) knew she was pregnant, as revealed in Fantastic Four Annual #5 two weeks after FF #67 hit the stands. Cei-U! I summon the protective papa! Wow! Good knowledge there, Cei-U! Not that I'd've expected any less from you, but still.
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Post by Arthur Gordon Scratch on Aug 4, 2017 19:56:08 GMT -5
I've been re-reading THB lately, by Paul Pope, and I'll be damned if it isn't some of the best comics ever, unique take on Sci-Fi, with strong female lead way before it became the norm. And it's still Pope's formative years, so you're getting to watch him grow and nurture his skills from issue to issue. A+
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Post by Reptisaurus! on Aug 4, 2017 22:58:47 GMT -5
So, following on from my reading of Jim Starlin's Warlock, I read Fantastic Four #66 and #67, featuring the first appearance of "Him" (later named as Warlock). These are very enjoyable Silver Age issues and, in particular, Jack Kirby's artwork is really great. The story is pretty gripping, although parts of it really don't make much sense, like why would Reed, Ben and Johnny leave Sue behind when they go to rescue Alicia from the mad scientists who have kidnapped her. I mean, Sue's the most powerful member of the team. The motives of the band of mad scientists didn't really make sense either. Regardless of those little niggles, these are prime Silver Age Marvel comics. Hugely enjoyable. I've always found this storyline to be the most significant misstep in the classic Fantastic Four run from #36 to #94. And I'm not saying it doesn't have its charming Silver Age moments. But it sure isn't "This Man, This Monster!"! Hmm. I thought this was the last great Fantastic Four story. (Of the Kirby run, possibly ever, I'll get back to you.) As mangled as it was it's still a pretty interesting part of Kirby's overreaching thematic narrative. Divinity created from technology intersecting with humanity... Felt like the first real prologue to the New Gods and Eternals.
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Post by Jesse on Aug 4, 2017 22:58:49 GMT -5
Captain Marvel Adventures #8"The Amazing Case of the Clue in Music" with art by C.C. Beck This one was a bit all over the place and not my favorite Captain Marvel story but was still a fun read. It has gangsters trying to kill a mob informant, wartime propaganda, a spy ring, a frame up by an imposter Captain Marvel and a villain using music to transmit state secrets.
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Post by Jesse on Aug 5, 2017 0:07:41 GMT -5
Batman #6 "The Secret Of The Iron Jungle" written by Bill Finger with art by Bob Kane and Jerry Robinson Batman and Robin travel to Texas to rescue an oil tycoon from his greedy partner. This is a pretty exciting issue with lot's of action. There's a car chase where an oil truck ignites and Batman swinging from old collapsing oil rigs.
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Post by dbutler69 on Aug 5, 2017 9:16:50 GMT -5
I've read Tales to Astonish #71-74 from 1965. Namor & Hulk share the title. Namor is on a quest to obtain Neptune's trident, to get his crown back from the usurper Krang. Good story, so-so art. However, I see Namor communicating with, and even commanding, sea creatures, ala Aquaman. I'm no Namor expert and I never knew he could do that. Also, in one scene, he somehow absorbs strength from the surrounding flora and fauna! Huh?? The Hulk story involved the Leader saving the Hulk's life, so the Hulk agrees to go to the Watcher's crib and take his most powerful item. The Leader apparently dies at the end. The Hulk actually has Banner's mind during this arc, which surprises me, though he quickly starts acting more savagely than Banner would.
I've also decided to slowly make my way through The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe, to be followed by Who's Who in the DC Universe. I'm going to read the original 1982 OHOTMU series side by side with the 1985 Deluxe Edition. After only one entry, the Abomination, I have to say that the Deluxe Edition has won me over, as it goes into far more detail than the original series.
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Confessor
CCF Mod Squad
Not Bucky O'Hare!
Posts: 10,085
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Post by Confessor on Aug 5, 2017 9:19:29 GMT -5
It's been a while since I read it. But you mentioned that the mad scientists don't really have a good motive, and that sure rings a bell. I remember them as being some colorless characters, distinguished from each other by some physical differences and some stereotypical professorial traits. I seem to remember hearing that Kirby wanted the story to be one or two chapters longer, so I assume he was going to flesh out their characters and their motives. It all gets wrapped up rather abruptly. Like Stan didn't understand (or didn't want to understand) Kirby's plotting, so he shut it down very quickly. The abrupt ending thing is right and so too is the thing about the villains being fairly colourless, but it honestly didn't feel that different to a lot of Silver Age comics to me in that respect. It also seems to me that I never quite got what was so vital about kidnapping Alicia Masters. I'm sure they give a reason for it, but I don't think I really bought it. Yeah, the reasoning behind that was a bit hokey -- essetially, this creature the scientists had created was giving off so much light and radiation that they couldn't actually see what it looked like. So they kidnapped the world's foremost blind sculptor (Alicia Masters), so that she could feel this artificial human's face with her hands and then sculpt an accurate representation of it for the scientists to see. So yeah, hokey as all hell, but again, very Silver Age. Another thing that is tickling my mind is the deaths of some of the security personnel at the Him facility. Aren't there a couple of guards killed rather coldly, and then scarcely mentioned again? I can't remember the details, but it seems to me that the FF (or somebody on the FF) was really dismissive about the deaths of the mercenaries. Or maybe they didn't know about it, but for some reason, the way it was handled bothered me. I don't recall any cold-blooded killing, but when Ben, Reed and Johnny are escaping with Alicia they mention that some of the mercenaries (who we've already been told are among the most cut-throat, lowlifes on the planet BTW) are running in the wrong direction to escape. The Fantastic Four don't bother to tell them that they're heading towards the danger, so, presumably they did perish in the destruction of the technological beehive. But since we don't actually see their deaths, they could've plausibly escaped. Hmm. I thought this was the last great Fantastic Four story. (Of the Kirby run, possibly ever, I'll get back to you.) As mangled as it was it's still a pretty interesting part of Kirby's overreaching thematic narrative. Divinity created from technology intersecting with humanity... Felt like the first real prologue to the New Gods and Eternals. This is more like how I felt. I'd never read these issues before, but they were very gripping -- you really felt Ben's desperation about Alicia's safety and the build up to finally seeing what "Him" looked like made for a real page turner.
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Post by dbutler69 on Aug 7, 2017 7:58:58 GMT -5
I read Hercules #8 from the Charleton series, cover date 1968, which I had picked up in a dollar bin years ago and never gotten around to reading. The Hercules story was one of the twelve labors (they must be doing one labor per issue) and it was pretty faithful to the Greek mythology, but the story was a bit rushed (that's what happens when you try to cram multiple stories into one comic) and the art was so-so. A bit static. There was a backup story written by Steve Skeates and drawn by Jim Aparo that was pretty good. I forgot the name of the main character, but he's an exiled Thane from Beowulf's kingdom.
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Post by Rob Allen on Aug 7, 2017 12:36:53 GMT -5
Thane of Bagarth, one of the hidden gems of 60s Charlton.
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Post by Jesse on Aug 7, 2017 12:41:01 GMT -5
Marvel Premiere #7"The Shadows of the Starstone!" written by Gardner F. Fox I liked the artwork in this and thought the plot was exciting. The use of Lovecraftian elements gave it a creepy vibe. It ends with a great cliffhanger and I'm looking forward to reading the conclusion. Summary:A man inherits his uncle's estate known as Witchhouse and learns of its connection to a cult and an ancient sunken city. While walking on the beach he finds a large egg-like jewel, called the Starstone, and takes it back to the house. Later while searching the underwater city he and his housekeeper Blondie are attacked by the demon Dagoth. Doctor Strange arrives to rescue them and traps the demon. Back at Witchhouse Strange uses his powers to read Blondie's mind and discovers that she is the high priestess of Dagoth reincarnated and learns the history of the sunken city. Now having freed himself the demon Dagoth uses his power to mind control the entire town. Wong and Clea arrive and wake Doctor Strange from his trance. He frees the rest of the town and banishes Dagoth to another dimension. They all return to Witchhouse but the Starstone has activated and the house now alive attacks them.
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Post by Jesse on Aug 7, 2017 12:51:07 GMT -5
Flash Comics #25"Joan's Investigation" This was fun for wartime propaganda and it was full of action and hi-jinks. Summary:Joan investigating racketeers for the Defense Department gets kidnapped by gangsters. She is rescued by The Flash and they decide to work together to take down the rackets. Jay goes undercover as a factory worker and stops some saboteurs. Afterward Joan is kidnapped again by Dukes, one of the racket bosses, in an attempt to lure The Flash. Knowing it's a trap Jay starts playing high speed pranks on the customers of Dukes' tavern in hopes of drawing him out. Dukes finally reveals himself after The Flash drives away all his customers. Jay gets Dukes to tell him where Joan is being kept and frees her again.
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Post by dbutler69 on Aug 7, 2017 13:27:38 GMT -5
I've always found this storyline to be the most significant misstep in the classic Fantastic Four run from #36 to #94. And I'm not saying it doesn't have its charming Silver Age moments. But it sure isn't "This Man, This Monster!"! Hmm. I thought this was the last great Fantastic Four story. (Of the Kirby run, possibly ever, I'll get back to you.) As mangled as it was it's still a pretty interesting part of Kirby's overreaching thematic narrative. Divinity created from technology intersecting with humanity... Felt like the first real prologue to the New Gods and Eternals. I might agree that FF #66-67 was the last "great" Kirby FF story. However, there were a couple of sagas in the late 80's/early 90's that I liked a lot, too, one involving Dr. Doom and the other involving the Thing enslaved on another planet.
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