Forgotten Masterpiece: LOS 4 FANTASTICOS #11

Here's another interesting find that I came across and for which I've been able to locate very little reliable information. As with the issues of EL SORPRENDENTE HOMBRE ARANA that we've been looking at from time to time, this issue of LOS 4 FANTASTICOS contains an original never-printed-in-the-United-States story featuring the Fantastic Four created by … Continue reading Forgotten Masterpiece: LOS 4 FANTASTICOS #11

BHOC: X-MEN #103

The All-New, All-Different X-Men hit like a lightning bolt out of the blue when the new iteration of the team debuted in GIANT-SIZE X-MEN #1. The title had been a reprint book for several years, and so the quantities of the early new issues that made it to the stands were much smaller than most … Continue reading BHOC: X-MEN #103

Forgotten Masterpiece: COMIX BOOK #2 and the first Maus

With the fact that Maus was banned from circulation in some school districts making national news this past week, the time seemed to be good to discuss COMIX BOOK, the short-lived Marvel magazine that published work by underground cartoonists--including the prototype short story for Art Spiegelman's Maus. COMIX BOOK was an outgrowth of Marvel's concerns … Continue reading Forgotten Masterpiece: COMIX BOOK #2 and the first Maus

WC: AVENGERS #15

I hadn't really thought about it this way before, but as things turned out, I wound up getting both the beginning and the end of the initial Masters of Evil cycle in my Windfall Comics purchase of 1988. For, like AVENGERS #6, this issue also features Zemo and the Masters, and begins to bring their … Continue reading WC: AVENGERS #15

BHOC: 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY #5

Marvel's decision to launch a licensed comic dedicated to 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY in 1976 is a bit of a mysterious choice. Clearly, the outfit was trying to move into licensed properties--in addition to 2001, they did STAR WARS and LOGAN'S RUN at about this time, and had great success with expanding on the mythology … Continue reading BHOC: 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY #5

The Outline for SUPERMAN VS THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN

While it's perhaps lost its uniqueness a little bit given the sheer number of latter day crossovers between characters originating at different companies (and in some cases, in different forms of media) it would he difficult to understate the significance of SUPERMAN VS THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN. For those who were there when it came out, … Continue reading The Outline for SUPERMAN VS THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN

BHOC: TWO-GUN KID #136

This was the very last issue of TWO-GUN KID that Marvel published. A string of issues that went back to 1948 (with admittedly several gaps) came to a final end here. I wasn't aware of that when I got this comic, nor did I get to enjoy this great Gil Kane cover--Kane was doing new … Continue reading BHOC: TWO-GUN KID #136

BHOC: CAPTAIN AMERICA #224

Ever since the departure of Jack Kirby some months earlier, CAPTAIN AMERICA had been a title that had struggled to maintain its schedule. Between then and here, there'd been unannounced reprints, and emergency back-up stories dropped in when full issues hadn't been completed in time. And now this time, an out-and-out fill-in story. It was … Continue reading BHOC: CAPTAIN AMERICA #224

Giving Notes on the Spider-Man Movie

So SPIDER-MAN: NO WAY HOME appears to be one of the most successful movies ever put to film (metaphorically, since these days teh media is largely digital.) But it wasn't all that long ago, relatively speaking, when the idea of a Spider-Man film was a long-chased dream. Because the rights had been optioned in the … Continue reading Giving Notes on the Spider-Man Movie

BHOC: AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #183

This was another issue of AMAZING SPIDER-MAN that I bought new during one of my weekly trips to my neighborhood 7-11 on the Thursday when new comic books were put out. It's the first book I encountered where Marvel has restored the cover months to its covers, a change I was in favor of for … Continue reading BHOC: AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #183