Post by driver1980 on Jun 1, 2024 10:48:30 GMT -5
Marvel UK began in 1972. Officially it ended in 1995, at which point Panini Comics took over the licence to reprint Marvel material in the UK.
I don’t know if this’ll be of interest to anyone, but 1989-1994 was a fascinating period for Marvel UK, so I’m going to post some details and thoughts about that period. It was a time in which some fascinating and at times different titles were published, and 1994 marked the final year in which it operated. For me, it was a time in which I was able to discover some classic material which may not have been reprinted prior to 1989.
I hope you enjoy what I will post here. I’ll be focusing on titles that began during those years rather than long-running titles that had been published prior to 1989, although I suppose breaking my own rules could occur. And it won’t necessarily be exhaustive as Marvel UK published so many comics!
As UK members will know, US comics were sold in the UK, usually in newsagents or specialist shops. Specialist shops were usually found in city centres - and some cities may not have had a specialist shop at all. If you lived in a town or village, your only option was the local newsagent. However, what they stocked was inconsistent. One month might see The Incredible Hulk and Detective Comics, but the month after might just see Superman’s 3 titles.
So, Marvel UK was the means by which one could keep up with the latest - and classic - Marvel stories. Some annuals reprinted tales that might have been a decade old. Others might reprint stuff 3 or more years old.
Also, it wasn’t just superhero stuff that was published. There was quite a variety.
My first post will be about 1989. We’ll begin with Cartoon Time, which didn’t last long. It published various Hanna-Barbera strips:
We got a Droids Spring Special, which reprinted the third issue of Droids:
The Incredible Hulk Presents was a favourite of mine. The Hulk was the lead strip - reprints of 70s tales - and the other strips were Doctor Who, G.I. Joe (reprints of G.I. Joe Special Missions), and Indiana Jones. Quite a mix, eh? Here’s one cover:
The Hulk got a Summer Special that year. The cover featured Lou Ferrigno and Bill Bixby, which led me to believe there’d be an adaptation of the TV series inside, but instead it reprinted The Incredible Hulk #340. Anyway, here’s the cover:
Spider-Woman got a Winter Special, which reprinted Spider-Woman #47:
My favourite title was The Punisher, which ran for 30 issues. In addition to Punisher, we got an adaptation of the RoboCop film, and when that finished, the comic reprinted The ‘Nam, which was my first experience of a US war comic:
It wasn’t just about superheroes, though. Popeye got a comic:
Tom and Jerry got a Summer Special:
One bizarre comic was It’s Wicked!, which ran for 17 issues. Consisting of humour strips, Slimer was the lead:
Why have a Slimer-centric comic when you can just give him his own title? (This one ran for six issues)
Most random was a William Tell Summer Special:
And there were numerous hardback annuals, too!
As you can see, there wasn’t a shortage of variety, catering to a lot of interests. All of those titles began in 1989 (and some ended in 1989, too!). Licensed properties were popular, although I’m really not sure where that William Tell comic came from. Was he big in 1989? Was he a factor? It was rather random. With the Hanna-Barbera title, that made sense as the cartoons were still airing on a lot of UK channels. But I’d like to know all two people who would have bought a William Tell comic.
It’s Wicked! was no doubt trying to jump on the bandwagon of titles like The Beano. And I guess Slimer’s 2 comics were riding that wave of popularity started by the Ghostbusters movies and cartoon.
I hope this might have been of interest to those outside the UK.
I don’t know if this’ll be of interest to anyone, but 1989-1994 was a fascinating period for Marvel UK, so I’m going to post some details and thoughts about that period. It was a time in which some fascinating and at times different titles were published, and 1994 marked the final year in which it operated. For me, it was a time in which I was able to discover some classic material which may not have been reprinted prior to 1989.
I hope you enjoy what I will post here. I’ll be focusing on titles that began during those years rather than long-running titles that had been published prior to 1989, although I suppose breaking my own rules could occur. And it won’t necessarily be exhaustive as Marvel UK published so many comics!
As UK members will know, US comics were sold in the UK, usually in newsagents or specialist shops. Specialist shops were usually found in city centres - and some cities may not have had a specialist shop at all. If you lived in a town or village, your only option was the local newsagent. However, what they stocked was inconsistent. One month might see The Incredible Hulk and Detective Comics, but the month after might just see Superman’s 3 titles.
So, Marvel UK was the means by which one could keep up with the latest - and classic - Marvel stories. Some annuals reprinted tales that might have been a decade old. Others might reprint stuff 3 or more years old.
Also, it wasn’t just superhero stuff that was published. There was quite a variety.
My first post will be about 1989. We’ll begin with Cartoon Time, which didn’t last long. It published various Hanna-Barbera strips:
We got a Droids Spring Special, which reprinted the third issue of Droids:
The Incredible Hulk Presents was a favourite of mine. The Hulk was the lead strip - reprints of 70s tales - and the other strips were Doctor Who, G.I. Joe (reprints of G.I. Joe Special Missions), and Indiana Jones. Quite a mix, eh? Here’s one cover:
The Hulk got a Summer Special that year. The cover featured Lou Ferrigno and Bill Bixby, which led me to believe there’d be an adaptation of the TV series inside, but instead it reprinted The Incredible Hulk #340. Anyway, here’s the cover:
Spider-Woman got a Winter Special, which reprinted Spider-Woman #47:
My favourite title was The Punisher, which ran for 30 issues. In addition to Punisher, we got an adaptation of the RoboCop film, and when that finished, the comic reprinted The ‘Nam, which was my first experience of a US war comic:
It wasn’t just about superheroes, though. Popeye got a comic:
Tom and Jerry got a Summer Special:
One bizarre comic was It’s Wicked!, which ran for 17 issues. Consisting of humour strips, Slimer was the lead:
Why have a Slimer-centric comic when you can just give him his own title? (This one ran for six issues)
Most random was a William Tell Summer Special:
And there were numerous hardback annuals, too!
As you can see, there wasn’t a shortage of variety, catering to a lot of interests. All of those titles began in 1989 (and some ended in 1989, too!). Licensed properties were popular, although I’m really not sure where that William Tell comic came from. Was he big in 1989? Was he a factor? It was rather random. With the Hanna-Barbera title, that made sense as the cartoons were still airing on a lot of UK channels. But I’d like to know all two people who would have bought a William Tell comic.
It’s Wicked! was no doubt trying to jump on the bandwagon of titles like The Beano. And I guess Slimer’s 2 comics were riding that wave of popularity started by the Ghostbusters movies and cartoon.
I hope this might have been of interest to those outside the UK.
