BHOC: MARVEL’S GREATEST COMICS #80

I knew what would be coming up ahead of time in each issue of MARVEL'S GREATEST COMICS, as I owned the George Olshevsky FANTASTIC FOUR INDEX https://tombrevoort.com/2019/11/24/bhoc-official-marvel-index-4/ So I knew that we were honing in on FANTASTIC FOUR #100, an issue that I was interested in entirely due to its centennial nature. Even then, the … Continue reading BHOC: MARVEL’S GREATEST COMICS #80

(Not So) Great Covers: FANTASTIC FOUR #81 (and MARVEL’S GREATEST COMICS #63)

Here is another example of the phenomenon that we looked at last time: a perfectly fine cover image by Jack Kirby that has been deliberately colored in such a way as to render it unattractive and unappealing. As I said last time, going to this sort of monochromatic color scheme was a last ditch move … Continue reading (Not So) Great Covers: FANTASTIC FOUR #81 (and MARVEL’S GREATEST COMICS #63)

BHOC: FANTASTIC FOUR #199

The excitement was building, at least for myself and my small collection of comic book reading friends, as FANTASTIC FOUR neared its big issue #200. The build-up had been going on for almost a year, and now that inker extraordinaire Joe Sinnott had returned to teh series after missing a couple of issues, everything was … Continue reading BHOC: FANTASTIC FOUR #199

WC: JOURNEY INTO MYSTERY #115

This issue of JOURNEY INTO MYSTERY was situated right at the transition point between the early Marvel style of storytelling and the more mature and measured approach the firm would take through its glory years. By this point, artist and largely plotter Jack Kirby had received a rate increase that permitted him to slow down … Continue reading WC: JOURNEY INTO MYSTERY #115

BHOC: FANTASTIC FOUR #198

Dumb observation first: that blue molding on the corridor Reed and the troops are running down confuses my eye every time I look at this cover. Even after 40+ years, every time I look at it, my brain wants to decode it as somehow being a part of Reed's body, the only other 100% blue … Continue reading BHOC: FANTASTIC FOUR #198

BHOC: MARVEL’S GREATEST COMICS #79

It was always a welcome moment when a new issue of MARVEL'S GREATEST COMICS turned up at my local 7-11. FANTASTIC FOUR was my favorite comic book at the time, and getting an issue of MGC, which reprinted older issues of FANTASTIC FOUR, was virtually as good as getting a new issue. The big change … Continue reading BHOC: MARVEL’S GREATEST COMICS #79

BHOC: FANTASTIC FOUR #102

I've spoken before about how the very first comic shop I ever encountered, the Heroes World outlet in Levittown, New York, was situated in the same shopping complex where my father worked for Chase Manhattan Bank. What this meant practically is that I could occasionally prevail upon him to stop by the store on his … Continue reading BHOC: FANTASTIC FOUR #102

BHOC: MARVEL SUPER ACTION #4

I was strangely super-excited when I got this issue of MARVEL SUPER ACTION in a 3-Bag at a department store or a toy store. I don't know what motivated Marvel after three issues featuring reprints of Captain America stories (which the title would return to the following issue) to devote this one to reprints of … Continue reading BHOC: MARVEL SUPER ACTION #4