Forgotten Masterpiece: LOS 4 FANTASTICOS #11

Here's another interesting find that I came across and for which I've been able to locate very little reliable information. As with the issues of EL SORPRENDENTE HOMBRE ARANA that we've been looking at from time to time, this issue of LOS 4 FANTASTICOS contains an original never-printed-in-the-United-States story featuring the Fantastic Four created by … Continue reading Forgotten Masterpiece: LOS 4 FANTASTICOS #11

Blah Blah Blog – Fifty

A post from my Marvel blog of a different decade, this one talking about a month in which Marvel's market share rose to be 50%. Fifty October 27, 2008 | 1:00 AM | By Tom_Brevoort | In General FiftyA lot of noise has been made of the fact that, in the just-reported sales figures for … Continue reading Blah Blah Blog – Fifty

BHOC: X-MEN #103

The All-New, All-Different X-Men hit like a lightning bolt out of the blue when the new iteration of the team debuted in GIANT-SIZE X-MEN #1. The title had been a reprint book for several years, and so the quantities of the early new issues that made it to the stands were much smaller than most … Continue reading BHOC: X-MEN #103

Forgotten Masterpiece: COMIX BOOK #2 and the first Maus

With the fact that Maus was banned from circulation in some school districts making national news this past week, the time seemed to be good to discuss COMIX BOOK, the short-lived Marvel magazine that published work by underground cartoonists--including the prototype short story for Art Spiegelman's Maus. COMIX BOOK was an outgrowth of Marvel's concerns … Continue reading Forgotten Masterpiece: COMIX BOOK #2 and the first Maus

WC: AVENGERS #15

I hadn't really thought about it this way before, but as things turned out, I wound up getting both the beginning and the end of the initial Masters of Evil cycle in my Windfall Comics purchase of 1988. For, like AVENGERS #6, this issue also features Zemo and the Masters, and begins to bring their … Continue reading WC: AVENGERS #15

Blah Blah Blog – Sales vs Quality

A post from my old-time Marvel blog discussing the oft-invoked fan belief that good sales are hardly a mark of quality material. Sales versus Quality October 28, 2008 | 1:00 AM | By Tom_Brevoort | In General Bouncing off of yesterday’s topic, let’s talk about that perennial conflict: sales versus quality.It’s a typical argument that … Continue reading Blah Blah Blog – Sales vs Quality

BHOC: 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY #5

Marvel's decision to launch a licensed comic dedicated to 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY in 1976 is a bit of a mysterious choice. Clearly, the outfit was trying to move into licensed properties--in addition to 2001, they did STAR WARS and LOGAN'S RUN at about this time, and had great success with expanding on the mythology … Continue reading BHOC: 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY #5

The Outline for SUPERMAN VS THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN

While it's perhaps lost its uniqueness a little bit given the sheer number of latter day crossovers between characters originating at different companies (and in some cases, in different forms of media) it would he difficult to understate the significance of SUPERMAN VS THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN. For those who were there when it came out, … Continue reading The Outline for SUPERMAN VS THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN

Brand Echh: Mighty Comics #40 Part 2

It strikes me that it's been a while since we checked in on the doings of my favorite of the Archie/Mighty Comics campy super heroes of the mid-1960s, the Web! As you already know if you've read our earlier features on this line of comics, at teh height of Batmania in America and the huge … Continue reading Brand Echh: Mighty Comics #40 Part 2

Blah Blah Blog – Three Challenges

A series of three posts from my long-ago Marvel blog that quizzed the audience about comics they had read and their feelings about them. Challenge! October 29, 2008 | 1:00 AM | By Tom_Brevoort | In General Just a quick update tonight, since I'm in a rush--but I wanted to throw a question out to … Continue reading Blah Blah Blog – Three Challenges