On the surface of things, KICKERS INC should have been one of the more stable and solidly-crafted of the titles launching as part of Marvel's 1986 anniversary initiative, the New Universe. It had a creative team with an established track record on AMAZING SPIDER-MAN, writer Tom DeFalco and artists Ron Frenz and Sal Buscema. But … Continue reading Brand Echh: KICKERS INC. #1
Another issue of DEFENDERS came out, and this one was a bit more to my liking. It was Earthbound, for one, and it introduced me to Steve Gerber's creation the Foolkiller. I wasn't familiar with the character prior to this--I hadn't much read MAN-THING or similar monster/horror titles. But I immediately understood his shtick, and … Continue reading BHOC: DEFENDERS #74
I had picked up POWER MAN AND IRON FIST #57 thanks to the guest appearance of the X-Men in that issue. But having cracked the seal, that meant that I almost automatically began buying the book regularly, even though I was only lukewarm on that prior issue. I had sampled an issue or two of … Continue reading BHOC: POWER MAN AND IRON FIST #58
This particular issue had been spotlighted on the monthly Bullpen Bulletins page, so I was more excited to snap it up than usual. And in the end, it was simply all right--an issue dedicated more to character-building than heroic adventure. This was one of the elements that made this period of UNCANNY X-MEN stand out … Continue reading BHOC: UNCANNY X-MEN #122
This was the first issue of POWER MAN AND IRON FIST that I bought new off of the stands. I had sampled a random issue or two of both POWER MAN and Iron Fist's appearances in MARVEL PREMIERE, but neither of them had especially hooked me. But the big added factor here was the guest-appearance … Continue reading BHOC: POWER MAN AND IRON FIST #57
It was momentum, pure and simple, that kept me purchasing DEFENDERS each and every month through this period. As it was a Marvel team title, on some level I felt as though i "had to" buy it or risk missing something important. Which is crazy, but also a part of the key to Marvel's success … Continue reading BHOC: DEFENDERS #69
MARVEL TWO-IN-ONE #49 was another junky, lifeless issue of what had become a largely junky, lifeless series. There was improvement just around the corner, though, and while I didn't know that at the time, my critical standards at the age of twelve were pretty meager. I liked the Thing and the Fantastic Four, and so … Continue reading BHOC: MARVEL TWO-IN-ONE #49
In 1979, DAREDVIL was a series that had been limping along for years. Perhaps its only saving grace, the thing that kept it from being cancelled, was the fact that it was one of the original Marvel titles that had been launched at the start of the 1960s at the dawn of the Marvel Age. … Continue reading BHOC: DAREDEVIL #157
FOOM #4 was the final issue of Marvel's fan club magazine to be put together by Jim Steranko. After this, production on the irregularly-published fanzine would be brought in-house and done by the people on staff beginning with Tony Isabella This resulted in a change in the design and the aesthetics of the magazine. But … Continue reading FOOM #4
This issue of IRON MAN was another book that I got out of a plastic 3-Bag being sold either in a department store or a toy store. Like the other recent books I picked up under similar circumstances, this issue had initially gone on sale before I'd started to follow Marvel comics, and so the … Continue reading BHOC: IRON MAN #103
The Tom Brevoort Experience 