This issue of SGT FURY was another book that my younger brother Ken purchased for himself on some trip to a local card store or the 7-11 or some such. He had a dalliance with war comics for a few months, and bought a number of random issues along the way. Eventually, all of those … Continue reading BHOC: SGT FURY #148
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
In 1982, there was simply no hotter book in the Direct Sales marketplace than UNCANNY X-MEN. Riding off of the tremendous success of the Dark Phoenix Saga, the series was rocketed to the absolute pinnacle of the sales charts, at least in comic book specialty shops. X-MEN was super hot, and so the publishers of … Continue reading THE X-MEN COMPANION #1: Roy Thomas Interview
Another new issue that I bought at Heroes World was IRON MAN #114. Not because I was particularly a huge IRON MAN fan, but because I went and bought all of the new books that they had that I didn't yet own before delving into the back issues. In retrospect, that may have been a … Continue reading BHOC: IRON MAN #114
This cover to WYATT EARP #6 by Bill Everett is cool in terms of just how much of a story it tells in a single image. It's got a good use to spotted blacks to draw the eye to Wyatt's face and head in the center of the cover. From there, his gaze carries the … Continue reading Great Covers: WYATT EARP #6
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
While we were at the Heroes World that evening after I'd spent the day doing menial tasks in my father's office, I didn't just pick up back issues but also a few new books that had arrived. Because Heroes World was being supplied by the then-nascent Direct Sales distribution network, they got their new books … Continue reading BHOC: AVENGERS #175
This issue of MARVEL COLLECTORS' ITEM CLASSICS was another book that I bought on that night after I'd worked all day at my father's office. It was an issue that I picked up for the most important reason possible: it was priced more cheaply than other issues that were there, thus allowing my money to … Continue reading BHOC: MARVEL COLLECTORS’ ITEM CLASSICS #17
This issue of FANTASTIC FOUR was the last one among the box of 150 Silver Age books that I bought in my Windfall Comics purchase for $50.00 in 1988. It was a story that had already read years before in its MARVEL'S GREATEST COMICS reprinting, which was one of the back issues I bought on … Continue reading WC: FANTASTIC FOUR #32
MARVEL COLLECTORS' ITEM CLASSICS was an Annual sized regular title that reprinted earlier stories in the Marvel canon for the benefit of readers who came to the line later. Like me. It eventually changed its name to MARVEL'S GREATEST COMICS and ran for a good long time. And for somebody like me, who was interested … Continue reading BHOC: MARVEL COLLECTORS’ ITEM CLASICS #13
The Tom Brevoort Experience 