GH: GHOST RIDER #80

The last regular issue of GHOST RIDER I bought was #80,--literally just one issue away from the series' cancellation with #81. So why did I jump off here, right before the end/ Well, the honest reason is that GHOST RIDER was never a book I was all that interested in. I bought it out of … Continue reading GH: GHOST RIDER #80

BHOC: HUMAN FLY #19

It was the final issue of the magazine, but I dutifully purchased this issue of HUMAN FLY, having bought the prior one. I don't think I even gave it much thought, I just went ahead and did it. I'd sometimes start following titles simply because I had some additional pocket money that week, and once … Continue reading BHOC: HUMAN FLY #19

BHOC: DAREDEVIL #157

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

GH: CAPTAIN AMERICA #281

The last regular issue of CAPTAIN AMERICA that I bought was #281, almost a hundred issues on from when I'd first sampled the book. The series was on a bit of an upswing at this point, having just concluded a multi-part adventure that established the contemporary Baron Zemo (who had previously appeared as the one-off … Continue reading GH: CAPTAIN AMERICA #281

BHOC: PETER PARKER, THE SPECTACULAR SPIDER-MAN #27

This issue of PETER PARKER, THE SPECTACULAR SPIDER-MAN is probably the most noteworthy and sought-after one in the whole of the run, for reasons that were not apparent to me when I first read it. And that's because it represents the first time that artist Frank Miller works on the character of Daredevil--a series that … Continue reading BHOC: PETER PARKER, THE SPECTACULAR SPIDER-MAN #27

BHOC: IRON MAN #119

The change was almost imperceivable, so incremental had it been, at least to me. But starting at around this point, it was difficult to argue that IRON MAN had become a much better title than at any earlier point in recent memory. The new creative team of co-plotter and scripter David Michelinie, penciler John Romita … Continue reading BHOC: IRON MAN #119

GH: AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #241

The last regular issue of AMAZING SPIDER-MAN that I bought new was this one, #241. And I know what some of you are thinking already: you dropped ASM in the middle of the Roger Stern and John Romita Jr. run (a run that's generally considered a high water mark, the best the series had been … Continue reading GH: AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #241

BHOC: FANTASTIC FOUR #203

This issue of FANTASTIC FOUR doesn't at first glance appear to be anything special, just another one-off story in this run. But it has an interesting story behind it. You see, writer/editor Marv Wolfman had been friends with FANTASTIC FOUR co-creator Jack Kirby since Marv was a child. He knew about Kirby's reluctance to draw … Continue reading BHOC: FANTASTIC FOUR #203

BHOC: UNCANNY X-MEN #118

There wasn't any one particular transcendent moment, but X-MEN quietly settled into being one of those series that I really liked, that always delivered. Part of that was that the creative team of Chris Claremont and John Byrne was remarkably consistent, seldom missing an issue. And partly this was due to my not quite knowing … Continue reading BHOC: UNCANNY X-MEN #118

BHOC: MARVEL TALES #100

Despite the fact that it was a reprint title, MARVEL TALES didn't miss the opportunity to go oversized for its 100th issue, a trend that had started with the centennial issues that Marvel and DC were putting out. It's kind of a mixed bag, in that one of the secondary features doesn't have any relation … Continue reading BHOC: MARVEL TALES #100