This was another book that came out of the drugstore's Big Bin of Affidavit Return Comics and the first point when I learned that before it had featured the Hulk exclusively, MARVEL SUPER-HEROES had been split between the Green Goliath and the Sub-Mariner just as TALES TO ASTONISH had been years before. More than anything, … Continue reading BHOC: MARVEL SUPER-HEROES #55
Pretty sure that this was another issue that was bought by my brother Ken. He continued to follow the Hulk's adventures regularly for a few months before his attention shifted elsewhere and I wound up picking up both the baton and the issues he'd already bought. It's another reprint of a nine-year-old story from 1969--throughout … Continue reading BHOC: MARVEL SUPER-HEROES #71
I've gone over this before, but it bears repeating. In 1978, there were no trade paperbacks, no Marvel Masterworks, no organized system reprinting the comic books of earlier days. There were a few scattered and irregular collections and that was about it. But Marvel, at least, maintained a regular and robust reprint program as a … Continue reading BHOC: MARVEL SUPER-HEROES #65
My brother Ken also picked up this issue of MARVEL SUPER-HEROES featuring his Marvel character of choice, the incredible Hulk. As I mentioned yesterday, he liked monsters, and ever since the Hulk TV movies had aired, he had begun to peruse the occasional Hulk comic. I have a vague recollection that I helped egg him … Continue reading BHOC: MARVEL SUPER-HEROES #70
My brother Ken was a fan of monster movies. Whenever Channel 7's 4:30 movie would cycle around to monster week, he'd be there, glued to the set. For me, they didn't do much, but for him, they were of great interest. So it's no great surprise to me that he wound up buying this issue … Continue reading BHOC: GODZILLA #8
This issue of MARVEL TWO-IN-ONE featured John Byrne's first outing with the team as both writer and artist, a time travel adventure that had Ben Grimm coming face-to-face with the earliest version of himself as seen and characterized in FANTASTIC FOUR #1 and #2. Byrne does a great job of capturing the period of the … Continue reading 5BC: Five Best Comics of 1979
A vibrant Steve Rude painted cover to the crossover INCREDIBLE HULK VS SUPERMAN. It’s designed just about perfectly, with the yellow burst of the background both silhouetting the characters and marking the point of impact where Superman has shattered the Hulk’s massive boulder. The only thing I don’t like on this one is the font … Continue reading Great Covers – INCREDIBLE HULK VS SUPERMAN
An arresting HULK cover by Todd McFarlane, one that’s been imitated and homaged dozens of times by now. I’m pretty sure that this was the first instance of a cover image where somebody else is reflected in Wolverine’s claws.Great intensity on Wolverine’s face as well.
Another in Kaare Andrews’ great run of HULK covers, here the title character is abstracted down to simply a massive shape, one that still dominates the image. The reticule graphics provide some good viewer context–you are the tank commander confronted by the unstoppable power of the Hulk. And the fact that the Hulk is mostly … Continue reading Great Covers – INCREDIBLE HULK #37
It is an obvious and blatant homage to Maurice Sendak, but this Kaare Andrews HULK cover totally works even on its own in the manner in which it channels Bruce banner’s inner rage demons into monsters following in his wake. The typical logo is modified for this issue as well, to better evoke the source … Continue reading Great Covers – INCREDIBLE HULK #49
