This issue of JOURNEY INTO MYSTERY represents the beginning of the fully-formed period of Thor's adventures. While launched over a year before in issue #83, the strip was swiftly handed over by editor Stan Lee to other creators to write and draw--Jack Kirby's talents were needed elsewhere, it seemed--and consequently, the series wasn't working as … Continue reading WC: JOURNEY INTO MYSTERY #101
This issue of FANTASTIC FOUR, #31, was another book that I got in my Windfall Comics purchase of 1988, in which I wound up buying a long box of about 150 Silver Age comics for the dirt-cheap price of $50.00. I had read this story previously in its later MARVEL'S GREATEST COMICS reprinting, but it … Continue reading WC: FANTASTIC FOUR #31
Wrapping up our coverage of the first issue of DC's in-house comic book fanzine, THE AMAZING WORLD OF DC COMICS. The series ran for 17 issues, as well as a few special releases both immediately before and during its run. It remains a treasure trove of information and artifacts about the National Periodical Publications of … Continue reading THE AMAZING WORLD OF DC COMICS #1, Part 3
So this was another issue that I got in a plastic 3-Bag at either a department store or a toy store, and it was the last part that I hadn't read of this four-part Skrulls storyline--a storyline that I read entirely out of sequence, beginning with the concluding chapter. It was the last multi-part storyline … Continue reading BHOC: MARVEL’S GREATEST COMICS #74
It's been said over the years that Marvel's publisher Martin Goodman had an unwavering faith in the sales appeal of Ant-Man. How much of that was due to him hearing about the sell-through numbers on the earliest appearances of the Atom over at rival DC I do not know--but it does account for the reason … Continue reading WC: TALES TO ASTONISH #38
Another installment of our popular feature where we showcase vintage photographs of popular comic book creators from days gone by. This is sometimes known as "Stan Lee and friends" given how often Lee was photographed over the years. Mark Gruenwald and Nel Yomtov at a convention in the late 1980s Renee Witterstaetter at a party … Continue reading Comics Creators in the Wild 11
In 1969, when the Merry Marvel Marching Society was phased out in favor of a new Marvel fan club the rights to which were licensed to a fellow named Don Wallace (as talked about in the piece below:) https://tombrevoort.com/2022/05/28/marvelmania-catalog-1/ one of the new club's endeavors was to put out a regular Marvel-themed fanzine, a subscription … Continue reading MARVELMANIA Magazine #1 (#0)
This issue of MARVEL SUPER-HEROES featuring the Incredible Hulk was another book that I got in a 3-Bag purchased at one of the department stores or toy stores that my family visited on one of our shopping expeditions. While the Hulk wasn't my favorite Marvel character, I enjoyed his escapades well enough--in particular when scripted … Continue reading BHOC: MARVEL SUPER-HEROES #67
MARVELMANIA was a short-lived operation set up in 1969 to sell licensed merchandise of the Marvel characters. It was positioned in the books as a spiritual successor to the Merry Marvel Marching Society, Marvel's in-house fan club, but in fact it was a separate fly-by-night organization entirely, one set up and licensed by Don Wallace. … Continue reading MARVELMANIA CATALOG #1
This issue of ETERNALS was another comic book that came to me in a 3-Bag bought at a Toy Store or a Department Store. There was no other way that I would have picked it up, as Jack Kirby's godly Marvel epic was not to my tastes as a kid. I found it harsh, and … Continue reading BHOC: ETERNALS #17
The Tom Brevoort Experience 