THE X-MEN COMPANION #2: Chris Claremont and Louise Jones (Simonson) Interview

For the final interview in THE X-MEN COMPANION, interviewer Peter Sanderson looks to the future, for what is poised to be an extremely eventful couple of months for Marvel's mutant heroes. He speaks at length with both Chris Claremont and X-MEN editor Louise Jones (better known as Louise Simonson today) concerning a variety of upcoming … Continue reading THE X-MEN COMPANION #2: Chris Claremont and Louise Jones (Simonson) Interview →

BHOC: AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #185

Next we come to a somewhat seminal issue of AMAZING SPIDER-MAN, the story in which Peter Parker finally graduates from college. Peter had begun his sojourn in Higher Education back in AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #31 in 1965, so writer/editor Marv Wolfman may have thought that it was time to move his life ahead a bit. In … Continue reading BHOC: AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #185 →

The Last Sub-Mariner Story (of the 1950s)

In 1953, after an absence on the newsstands of four years, Martin Goodman resurrected his company's three big successful super hero characters from the 1940s; Captain America, the Human Torch and the Sub-Mariner. By all accounts, this decision to bring back these heroes appears to be in response to the strong reaction the new ADVENTURES … Continue reading The Last Sub-Mariner Story (of the 1950s) →

MARVELMANIA Magazine #1

MARVELMANIA was the house fanzine of the company of the same name, an outfit which had been licensed the rights to produce Marvel-related merchandise and specialty items to be sold directly to the readership. MARVELMANIA took the place of the earlier MERRY MARVEL MARCHING SOCIETY as the official fan club of Marvel, though it didn't … Continue reading MARVELMANIA Magazine #1 →

THE X-MEN COMPANION #2: John Byrne Interview

Perhaps the most popular artist of the 1980s, John Byrne's star truly began to rise when he began drawing (and co-plotting) X-MEN with Chris Claremont. Eventually, irreconcilable differences in the direction to take the characters caused Byrne to leave the book for greener pastures--his long run as writer/artist of FANTASTIC FOUR. But the mark he … Continue reading THE X-MEN COMPANION #2: John Byrne Interview →

FOOM #2, Part Two

Continuing with our survey of FOOM #2, the second issue of the fan magazine published by Friends Of Ol' Marvel, Marvel's in-house fan club of the 1970s. The second issue, like the first, was put together by Jim Steranko and reflects his aesthetics in terms of its design and typography treatment. Another puzzle page. As … Continue reading FOOM #2, Part Two →

BHOC: MARVEL TWO-IN-ONE #44

I was continuing to buy MARVEL TWO-IN-ONE every month due to my love for the Thing as a character, but there was no way of avoiding the feeling that the series was at something of a nadir. With the departure of writer/editor Marv Wolfman, a rotating team of creators had ben crafting stories that weren't … Continue reading BHOC: MARVEL TWO-IN-ONE #44 →

THE X-MEN COMPANION #2: Terry Austin Interview

More material from THE X-MEN COMPANION Volume Two, the second of two softcover books devoted to the development and the early days of what had become the most popular feature in the comics world. These two volumes were published in 1982, and so the memories of all involved about the details of their collaboration are … Continue reading THE X-MEN COMPANION #2: Terry Austin Interview →

BHOC: MARVEL TRIPLE ACTION #44

Marvel's reprint line was still going strong, providing a companion reprint title for most of the major series the company was putting out. This helped to reinforce the idea that the Marvel Universe was all one single continuous tapestry--these years-old stories were still important and might factor in to new adventures produced today. Or such … Continue reading BHOC: MARVEL TRIPLE ACTION #44 →

(Not So) Great Covers: QUASAR #56

This is actually the opposite of what we usually do here, spotlighting a particular great comic book cover of years past. This time, though, we're going to look at a cover that's all wrong. This cover actually hung in my office for years as an example to people of how not to approach doing a … Continue reading (Not So) Great Covers: QUASAR #56 →