One of the immediate benefits of having switched my shopping for new comics to the recently-opened Stationery store was that I once again had access to Marvel's upsized titles and Annuals. The 7-11 that I had been getting most of my comics from had long since stopped carrying any non-regulation formatted comic books, and so … Continue reading BHOC: MARVEL TWO-IN-ONE ANNUAL #4
Quietly and without fanfare, IRON MAN had become one of the most reliably entertaining comics in the Marvel line. This was all down to the efforts of the creative team, writer David Michelinie, penciler John Romita Jr., and inker and co-plotter Bob Layton. It was also a reflection of the changing times; Micheline and Layton … Continue reading BHOC: IRON MAN #126
I picked up the newest issue of AVENGERS on my now-weekly Thursday trip to the Stationery Store. The book was on something of a roll right at that moment, in the midst of a three-part adventure sorting out the backstories of the Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver (or trying to--later developments would overturn some of the … Continue reading BHOC: AVENGERS #187
The next new character and series that Valiant introduced to its growing line of interconnected super hero titles was SHADOWMAN. As they'd started to do previously, the creators seeded lead character Jack Boniface into the background of another earlier title--in this case, X-O MANOWAR #4. In doing so, they gave readers a bit of an … Continue reading Brand Echh: SHADOWMAN #1
There were other concepts that were originated with the intention that they would be a part of the New Universe initiative but were left by the wayside as the parameters of that concept changed and evolved. One of them went on to become one of the lesser lights of the Marvel Universe. This was Speedball, … Continue reading Brand Echh: SPEEDBALL #1
These next two issues of IRON MAN were somewhat defining for the era, in that they separated Tony Stark from his armor and caused him to have to deal with life-threatening situations on his own without the aid of advanced ordinance and head-to-toe protection. In essence, it was a full steer into the style of … Continue reading BHOC: IRON MAN #125
The latest issue of AVENGERS came out around this time, the second part of a three-part story that would redefine the background and history of the Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver. it was a series that I liked during this time, although it never quite rose to the status of my favorite book at any point; … Continue reading BHOC: AVENGERS #186
We're at the point where IRON MAN started to get really good under the creative team of writer David Michelinie, penciler John Romita Jr. and inker and co-plotter Bob Layton. The transformation sort of snuck up on me as a reader at the time. I found that I was enjoying IRON MAN more and more, … Continue reading BHOC: IRON MAN #124
This next issue of AVENGERS was the first part of a well-remembered storyline--not so much for the plot per se as for the revelations it set up for prominent Avengers Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch about their lineage. It's worth setting the table a little bit, though. When they were introduced, Wanda and Pietro were … Continue reading BHOC: AVENGERS #185
I don't remember where I picked up this issue of MARVEL PREMIERE featuring the second half of the two-part debut of the new Ant-Man, Scott Lang. But it wasn't at my regular 7-11 haunt; they weren't carrying MARVEL PREMIERE, and their selection in general had been pulled back to tried-and-true sellers. So I must have … Continue reading BHOC: MARVEL PREMIERE #48
