So, how did this year go for our hero? Good question, and one I'm still trying to figure out.
The Convention Scene was rough this year. Really rough. I never had a "Home Run" show this year. At best, most of my shows were "Good Enough", and a few of the shows I worked at were full-on Bombs. Still, it wasn't a total loss. I went out to California and attended APE for the first time, which was nice. SPACE in Columbus, OH is always a show I enjoy as well. So there's that.
In terms of comic output, this year was markedly different from last year. Last year, of course was the completely dreaded, and yet completely glorious 24 Comix in a Single Year Challenge (which I completed, of course). This year, I decided to cool my jets a little. And, I was a little sidetracked... fixing some things. Still, I produced a handful of books.
My big flub up this year was "Pulp Horrorshow" (v.3) #1. I had been reading a lot of comics with... crude, simplistic artwork, and I wanted to experiment with an art style that was very rough and very freehand. The end result was the middle story of Pulp Horrorshow, an ugly, clunky, confusing mess of a thing that I'm really not very happy with at all. To fix the problem, I set the price point on the comic very low (it's only a buck fifty, even if it's garbage it's still cheaper than everything else out there), and I added not one but two back up stories (including a really well drawn aliceislost story that I am very proud of) to pad out the ugliness.
"Pulp Horrorshow" (v.3) #2 was better. Better cover art (I love ripping off those old EC covers), better interior art (much, much better), and the stories inside almost made sense. Overall, it was still a very random, rambling mess, but it introduced some new characters and re-introduced some old ones, so overall not bad, by comparison.
"SDF" #1 was my first attempt... ever, I think... at what I call Robert Kirkman Infinite Storytelling, which is really just 80s/90s style comic writing where nothing ever comes to a conclusion and the story just goes on and on and on with no really obvious overarching structure. With a lot of the comics I created this year, the watch word was World Building. Pulp Horrorshow showed us what it was like to be trapped in the cities and at the mercy of living in a world owned by the nightmarish Ortex Corporation. SDF, conversely, showed us the more optimistic, but just as deadly world of the people trying to escape from Ortex's Control. Whether any of this was effectively conveyed amidst all of the fighting and bashing is unknown to me. Besides World Building, the other major element I wanted to explore in SDF was the character of Octopus Jones. I really like the character, and seeing his slow evolution on the page has been a lot of fun for me. SDF 1 also gave us the first aliceislost back up story of the year, and I think the art on it is some of my best to date.
"SDF" #2 really just kept the ball rolling. More fighting, more new characters, more World Building (the concept of Ortex Headhunters was explored more deeply), and more screen time for Octopus Jones. I introduced the Mystery of the Floating Pregnant Woman (keep your eyes open for more on that one), and got more in the groove with the whole "Set myself up for the Cliffhanger" style of writing this comic demanded. Also, another aliceislost strip, which was probably the weakest of the three AIL strips I completed this year, although, conversely, it contained the most important story elements.
I probably would be feeling pretty bad about my Comix Output this year if I hadn't completed the next two comix on this list. "Clown & Penguin" #1 is officially my new High Water Mark for Comix right now. It's a killer book, and I really feel like I just knocked the ball completely out of the park with this one. After spending all of 2011 producing a blitzkrieg of Clown centric books that saw our two unlikely heroes travel all across the galaxy and beyond, "Clown & Penguin" #1 gave up on the pretense and simply evolved the Clown into a NuAge Silver Surfer, and threw me deep into the Tom Scioli-esque waters of Kirby-as-Genre. Towering Death Gods wearing Atomic Bombs as Decorative Necklaces, a One Eyed Demon in a Shabby Suit screaming commands over a Video Monitor jammed into the mouth of an enslaved Angel, Hermaphroditic Angel Whores transforming into sleek, cold, emotionless Machines of Self-Righteous Destruction, Floating Dreamworlds used as an effective means of communication, Swirling Barriers of Mad Colors Locking a Doorway to Unknowable Realms, Tasty Hamburgers, a Smiling Yellow Submarine Spaceship, Four Armed Purple Aliens running for their lives, and a somewhat Nude Cosmic Clown wielding a Ridiculously Oversized Cosmic Hammer and riding on a Cosmic Unicycle being backed up by his best friend, a mute, blue Penguin who has turned Enlightenment into a Subtle Cosmic Groove. Long story short, "Clown & Penguin" is COMIX! And, yeah, I'm proud as hell of it.
In the "I'm Incredibly Proud but Also Somewhat Embarrassed" Department, we come to my last Comic of the Year, "Death Moth". An attempted revival of my twice-over Dead character, Bad Jack, "Death Moth" became an opportunity for me to finally take the gloves and go full tilt with a story that just unleashed all of the F****D up S**T that is always floating around in the back of my head. Whereas my other stories this year were about the different aspects of the War with the Ortex Corporation, "Death Moth" focused on the hidden, secret, and extremely deadly threat of the Nefarious Dr. Dendull and his Insidious Clinic Group. The distorted, time jumping story gives us hints of the lives of Jack Hawksmoth, originally a superhero known as Gold Hawk, but who after being killed by his own partner, returns from the dead as Bad Jack, We get a glimpse at the previously unseen Candy Colored War, and we get a new incarnation of Bad Jack, as he rises from the grave a second time as the titular Death Moth. Also, we get Giant, Horrible Penises and Sexy Zombie Monster Women. It was nice to get out of my comfort zone and just cut loose with a story for once, but I'll admit, it was kind of uncomfortable selling this comic on the Convention Circuit. Especially when people would flip to... that one page. You know the one.
So, all in all, a slow year for TORC Press. A weak run on the Convention Circuit and only 6 books produced in a year (geez... only 6? Really?), was counteracted by me producing two of my Best Books to Date. Overall, not a bad year.
Next Year: More of Everything. Also, next year will find me arriving at my 100th TORC Press Comic! Be there or be square.
Thursday, December 27, 2012
Wednesday, December 26, 2012
My Comics World- End of 2012 Edition
Comics are my life, so if I'm doing a year in review, I'm mostly just gonna find myself talking about comics. So, here's what I'm currently reading as 2012 comes to a close.
Anything by Clint Basinger- My friend, fellow Comic Quest Creator's Alliance Member, and occasional collaborator, Clint Basinger makes some of the best comics going today, period. His comics are wild, silly, weird, and endlessly beautiful. I'm not sure what exactly came out this year (my memory sucks ass), but I make it a policy to score anything Clint produces. Also, Nacho-veratu (a Nacho Cheez Vampire)... GENIUS!
Copra by Michael Fiffe- I heard about this self published, monthly comic online, and I decided to try it out. It's pretty darn good, a story about a...ahem...suicide squad... of mercenaries who have a gig go really, really wrong, and end up hunted fugitives. I'm not sure I'm completely thrilled by the story, but the artwork and the utterly bizarre character designs are jaw dropping, making this worth the extra money you gotta spend on shipping.
Anything by Tom Scioli- This year, in the world of Tom Scioli, we got: Final Frontier- a bizarre homage to the Fantastic Four, featuring an alt-world FF re-imagined as the Beetles, where Sound and Music are at the center of everything. What starts as a somewhat simple story of a wedding spirals madly out of control into a ever expanding universe where anything can happen. It was a trip. Other than that, we got some cool short online comics (Myth was awesome), a twisted take on Superman called "Satan's Soldier" that's been pretty darn cool, and, in the world of print comics, we got an issue of "Godland" that was a full-on tripadelic thrill ride of wonder. Tom Scioli's the man, man.
BPRD and Hellboy- By Mike Mignola and lotsa different artists (and back up writers)- What can I say about BPRD? I love it. Horrible monsters, the slow burn of an inevitable apocalypse, a surprise in just about every issue, just wonderful. If there's something I don't like about this comic, it's that so many of my favorite characters are either dead now or in a coma or have lost their powers and disappeared. As a result, we've been left with a skeleton crew consisting of mostly under equipped humans trapped in a desperate struggle for survival. It's still great, but I miss Abe and Liz. Also, we got some Hellboy this year (I think there was Hellboy this year). I haven't got Hellboy in Hell yet, but what Hellboy that did come out this year was awesome.
Baltimore- By Mike Mignola, Christopher Golden, and various artists- Produced by the same crew that gave us Hellboy and the BPRD, but set in an alternate universe where Vampires (really, really nasty Vampires) run rampant, Baltimore follows the grim adventures of one legged Lord Baltimore in his endless Quixotic quest to kill the one eyed Vampire that killed his family. It's grim and dark and has lotsa monsters. I like the lotsa monsters part the best.
Happy- by Grant Morrison and Darick Robertson- I hate to admit this, as much as I love Grant Morrison, this series just isn't thrilling me all that much. I like it alright, but it doesn't kill it like other Morrison books. On the bright side, it's only a mini-series, and I'm curious to see how it will end.
Haunt- by Joe Casey and Nathan Fox- This series surprised the hell out of me. The star of the show is Nathan Fox's wildly kinetic artwork that evokes a bit of a Paul Pope feel. The story, about evil religious cults and a pair of squabbling brothers still connected after death is pretty okay.
Multiple Warheads- by Brandon Graham- For me, personally, the top two guys making comics right now are Tom Scioli and Brandon Graham. Brandon's work is so full of madness, invention, oddball puns, and pure fun, it's almost impossible not to be enamored with it. Multiple Warheads is pure Graham, a drifting road trip of weirdness in a world that continually reveals itself to us in new and exciting ways.
Prophet- by Brandon Graham and various artists- Speaking of Brandon Graham, I consider Graham's re-imagining of the not-so-classic Prophet to be the best damn comic being produced today. Endlessly inventive, completely unpredictable, and jaw droppingly beautiful. Prophet is just the best thing out there.
Saga- by Brian Vaughn and Fiona Staples- A close second for best comic out there is Saga. A sci-fi/fantasy world full of infinite dangers where even the innocent are not safe, Saga not only has truly, truly beautiful artwork, but a pretty damn compelling story and a bizarre and wonderful cast of characters as well. Just about everyone's reading this one. If you're not, you really should be.
Supreme- by Erik Larsen- So, just to be clear, I'm reading all of the Extreme Reboot books, because I can. Supreme's pretty okay, featuring a conflict between the original, hard nosed, Rob Liefeld Supreme and the more idealistic, retro Supreme created by Alan Moore. I'm curious to see where it's going.
Adventure Time- Who knew this comic would be so rad? I mean, I LOVELOVELOVE the cartoon, but I figured the comic wouldn't be worth a damn. I was wrong. It was brilliant, and continues to be so. The recent "Choose Your Own Adventure Time" comic was genius.
Bravest Warriors- If Adventure Time is "Dragon's Lair", then Bravest Warriors is "Space Ace". Like Adventure Time, Bravest is a fun, silly, actiony comic set in a colorful universe of endless possibilities. Great stuff, glad I picked it up.
It Girl & the Atomics- Jamie S. Rich and various- Not as good as Madman, this spin off series is still pretty fun, and helps to flesh out some of the various supporting characters from the Madmanverse. I figure I'll stick around for awhile.
Spawn- by Todd McFarlane & Symon Kudranski- In a bizarre fit of nostalgia, I found myself reading Spawn again after a ten year break. It's not bad, but not great. If nothing else, I find myself trying to put the various puzzle pieces of this series together, trying to reconcile where the series left off when I quit reading, and where the series is now. At the very least, it's an interesting experiment.
Glory- by Joe Keatinge & Ross Campbell- Another comic in the Extreme Revival, Glory is a firecracker of a comic, rising from the ashes of Liefeld's Vanilla rip-off of Wonder Woman, and Alan Moore's Vanilla warm up to Promethea, Glory is a wild, bloody, sexy battlefield of a comic full of mystery and surprise. But the real star of the show is the beautiful artwork by Ross Campbell. I never knew you could draw women the way he draws women and somehow make them power and sexy at the same time. A truly underrated comic.
Youngblood- by John McLaughlin & Jon Malin- More Extreme Revivalism, Youngblood has turned out to be a really good comic, full of interesting characters, intriguing mysteries, and, perhaps best of all, every issue has a self contained story where Youngblood actually saves the day. Just good, solid, comics work.
Bloodstrike- The last of the Extreme Reboot titles, Bloodstrike is bloody and vicious and fun. That is all.
Savage Dragon by Erik Larsen- For years I have attempted to get into the Dragon, and for years I've been picking up an issue here and an issue there, but have never managed to stay with the series. In celebration of 20 Years of Image Comics (wow, 20 Years since the Image Revolution changed my life... wow), I decided to try to stick with the Dragon for awhile. I jumped in at a pretty odd spot, so in a way it's pretty excited, like trying to assemble a jigsaw puzzle of ideas. It's neat.
Those are the main comics I'm following right now. Other than that, I'm always looking forward to new comics from fellow Small Press creators, such as Nik Havert (Pickle Press), Steven Hager and Bruce Rosenberg (Dutchy Digest), John Hoban (Apocalypse City, Night of the Smurfing Dead), Paul Schultz (The Serial Squad), David Branstetter (Straw Man), Craig Bogart (the Ineffables), Jon Michael Lennon (Product of Society), Leslie and Jarod Anderson (Maybe Too Metal), Johnathon and Betsy Brock (Fortune Pancakes and Fruit!), and Mark Griffin (Night Warrior). Hope I didn't forget anyone...
Anything by Clint Basinger- My friend, fellow Comic Quest Creator's Alliance Member, and occasional collaborator, Clint Basinger makes some of the best comics going today, period. His comics are wild, silly, weird, and endlessly beautiful. I'm not sure what exactly came out this year (my memory sucks ass), but I make it a policy to score anything Clint produces. Also, Nacho-veratu (a Nacho Cheez Vampire)... GENIUS!
Copra by Michael Fiffe- I heard about this self published, monthly comic online, and I decided to try it out. It's pretty darn good, a story about a...ahem...suicide squad... of mercenaries who have a gig go really, really wrong, and end up hunted fugitives. I'm not sure I'm completely thrilled by the story, but the artwork and the utterly bizarre character designs are jaw dropping, making this worth the extra money you gotta spend on shipping.
Anything by Tom Scioli- This year, in the world of Tom Scioli, we got: Final Frontier- a bizarre homage to the Fantastic Four, featuring an alt-world FF re-imagined as the Beetles, where Sound and Music are at the center of everything. What starts as a somewhat simple story of a wedding spirals madly out of control into a ever expanding universe where anything can happen. It was a trip. Other than that, we got some cool short online comics (Myth was awesome), a twisted take on Superman called "Satan's Soldier" that's been pretty darn cool, and, in the world of print comics, we got an issue of "Godland" that was a full-on tripadelic thrill ride of wonder. Tom Scioli's the man, man.
BPRD and Hellboy- By Mike Mignola and lotsa different artists (and back up writers)- What can I say about BPRD? I love it. Horrible monsters, the slow burn of an inevitable apocalypse, a surprise in just about every issue, just wonderful. If there's something I don't like about this comic, it's that so many of my favorite characters are either dead now or in a coma or have lost their powers and disappeared. As a result, we've been left with a skeleton crew consisting of mostly under equipped humans trapped in a desperate struggle for survival. It's still great, but I miss Abe and Liz. Also, we got some Hellboy this year (I think there was Hellboy this year). I haven't got Hellboy in Hell yet, but what Hellboy that did come out this year was awesome.
Baltimore- By Mike Mignola, Christopher Golden, and various artists- Produced by the same crew that gave us Hellboy and the BPRD, but set in an alternate universe where Vampires (really, really nasty Vampires) run rampant, Baltimore follows the grim adventures of one legged Lord Baltimore in his endless Quixotic quest to kill the one eyed Vampire that killed his family. It's grim and dark and has lotsa monsters. I like the lotsa monsters part the best.
Happy- by Grant Morrison and Darick Robertson- I hate to admit this, as much as I love Grant Morrison, this series just isn't thrilling me all that much. I like it alright, but it doesn't kill it like other Morrison books. On the bright side, it's only a mini-series, and I'm curious to see how it will end.
Haunt- by Joe Casey and Nathan Fox- This series surprised the hell out of me. The star of the show is Nathan Fox's wildly kinetic artwork that evokes a bit of a Paul Pope feel. The story, about evil religious cults and a pair of squabbling brothers still connected after death is pretty okay.
Multiple Warheads- by Brandon Graham- For me, personally, the top two guys making comics right now are Tom Scioli and Brandon Graham. Brandon's work is so full of madness, invention, oddball puns, and pure fun, it's almost impossible not to be enamored with it. Multiple Warheads is pure Graham, a drifting road trip of weirdness in a world that continually reveals itself to us in new and exciting ways.
Prophet- by Brandon Graham and various artists- Speaking of Brandon Graham, I consider Graham's re-imagining of the not-so-classic Prophet to be the best damn comic being produced today. Endlessly inventive, completely unpredictable, and jaw droppingly beautiful. Prophet is just the best thing out there.
Saga- by Brian Vaughn and Fiona Staples- A close second for best comic out there is Saga. A sci-fi/fantasy world full of infinite dangers where even the innocent are not safe, Saga not only has truly, truly beautiful artwork, but a pretty damn compelling story and a bizarre and wonderful cast of characters as well. Just about everyone's reading this one. If you're not, you really should be.
Supreme- by Erik Larsen- So, just to be clear, I'm reading all of the Extreme Reboot books, because I can. Supreme's pretty okay, featuring a conflict between the original, hard nosed, Rob Liefeld Supreme and the more idealistic, retro Supreme created by Alan Moore. I'm curious to see where it's going.
Adventure Time- Who knew this comic would be so rad? I mean, I LOVELOVELOVE the cartoon, but I figured the comic wouldn't be worth a damn. I was wrong. It was brilliant, and continues to be so. The recent "Choose Your Own Adventure Time" comic was genius.
Bravest Warriors- If Adventure Time is "Dragon's Lair", then Bravest Warriors is "Space Ace". Like Adventure Time, Bravest is a fun, silly, actiony comic set in a colorful universe of endless possibilities. Great stuff, glad I picked it up.
It Girl & the Atomics- Jamie S. Rich and various- Not as good as Madman, this spin off series is still pretty fun, and helps to flesh out some of the various supporting characters from the Madmanverse. I figure I'll stick around for awhile.
Spawn- by Todd McFarlane & Symon Kudranski- In a bizarre fit of nostalgia, I found myself reading Spawn again after a ten year break. It's not bad, but not great. If nothing else, I find myself trying to put the various puzzle pieces of this series together, trying to reconcile where the series left off when I quit reading, and where the series is now. At the very least, it's an interesting experiment.
Glory- by Joe Keatinge & Ross Campbell- Another comic in the Extreme Revival, Glory is a firecracker of a comic, rising from the ashes of Liefeld's Vanilla rip-off of Wonder Woman, and Alan Moore's Vanilla warm up to Promethea, Glory is a wild, bloody, sexy battlefield of a comic full of mystery and surprise. But the real star of the show is the beautiful artwork by Ross Campbell. I never knew you could draw women the way he draws women and somehow make them power and sexy at the same time. A truly underrated comic.
Youngblood- by John McLaughlin & Jon Malin- More Extreme Revivalism, Youngblood has turned out to be a really good comic, full of interesting characters, intriguing mysteries, and, perhaps best of all, every issue has a self contained story where Youngblood actually saves the day. Just good, solid, comics work.
Bloodstrike- The last of the Extreme Reboot titles, Bloodstrike is bloody and vicious and fun. That is all.
Savage Dragon by Erik Larsen- For years I have attempted to get into the Dragon, and for years I've been picking up an issue here and an issue there, but have never managed to stay with the series. In celebration of 20 Years of Image Comics (wow, 20 Years since the Image Revolution changed my life... wow), I decided to try to stick with the Dragon for awhile. I jumped in at a pretty odd spot, so in a way it's pretty excited, like trying to assemble a jigsaw puzzle of ideas. It's neat.
Those are the main comics I'm following right now. Other than that, I'm always looking forward to new comics from fellow Small Press creators, such as Nik Havert (Pickle Press), Steven Hager and Bruce Rosenberg (Dutchy Digest), John Hoban (Apocalypse City, Night of the Smurfing Dead), Paul Schultz (The Serial Squad), David Branstetter (Straw Man), Craig Bogart (the Ineffables), Jon Michael Lennon (Product of Society), Leslie and Jarod Anderson (Maybe Too Metal), Johnathon and Betsy Brock (Fortune Pancakes and Fruit!), and Mark Griffin (Night Warrior). Hope I didn't forget anyone...
Monday, December 17, 2012
Four & Thor 10
Note: Of my three webcomix, two of them, "SDF" and "Truth or Consequences" are on break until after the New Year. That means that the only new strip will be "Pulp Horrorshow" on Wednesday (and actually, that one's about to wrap up, too). In the meantime, I may start adding new artwork to the Tumblr just to have something to do. We'll see. Oh, and I'm gonna take a slight break from Four & Thor after #11, since I will be wrapping up my coverage of "Essential Fantastic Four" #1.
Fantastic Four #19
Jack Kirby/Dick Ayers/Stan Lee
The Story: Reed finds some ancient hieroglyphics that depict a blind pharaoh who was cured by Radioactive Herbs. Obviously, this could help out poor, blind Alicia, so the FF hop on Dr. Doom's abandoned Time Platform, and with Alicia working the controls (she memorized the operation through touch), the FF zap back to the days of Ancient Egypt. Unfortunately, warriors that don't look like Egyptian warriors attack our heroes. The FF easily deal with the enemy until, mysteriously, something drains the FF of their strength and renders them feeble. The FF are brought before Pharaoh Rama Tut, who reveals he lived in the Far Future, but was bored. Rama found an old time machine left behind by his ancestor (hmmm...wonder who we know who has a time machine...) and used it to create a Time Machine that looks like the Sphinx of Ancient Egypt (why not?). Rama bounced around time stealing stuff, and eventually crash landed in Ancient Egypt. The crash blinded him, but the natives healed him with Radioactive Herbs (the herbs being irradiated by the crashing of Rama's own ship...huh?). Anyway, long story short Rama Tut has a Ray Gun that drains the FF of their wills, and they become slaves. Reed, Ben, and Johny are put to work, while Sue is outfitted to be Tut's Queen. Fortunately, the Thing reverts to Ben Grimm (who is unaffected by the Ray, of course), and escapes. Ben steals the Pharaoh's Gun and zaps Sue, freeing her, before reverting back to the Thing. Sue zaps Johny, who attacks Tut, who flees. Sue zaps Ben, and then the Torch finds Reed and zaps him. With our crew reunited, the Four pursue the Pharaoh, and, as usual, have to overcome a bunch of traps. Tut eventually escapes using a Time Travel Pod, leaving the Sphinx behind and destroying the guts of the statue to erase his presence in that era. The Four find the Optic Nerve Restorative (clearly marked on the vial) just in time for the Time Platform to return them to the present. Unfortunately, Radioactive Items can't travel through Time on Doom's Machine. So, Alicia has to stay blind. D'oh!
Notes: Not much to say. Crazy time travel fun.
The Art: Kirby's cover to this issue is one of those Truly Iconic Silver Age Covers. The heroes in a strange land/time enslaved by a mysterious menace. This theme was more common of DC (this kinda crap always happened to Superman and/or the JLA), but this is an instance of it happening to Marvel characters. Other than that, we get a progressively rockier Thing, and Reed turning himself into a Big Wheel and racing through the desert.
Whatta I Think: This is a very Silver Age Comic. Crazy, moderately pointless Time Travel. Gadgets and Traps. An ending that's kinda "We're back to square one". Pure Silver Age. Which is nice.
Fantastic Four #20
Jack Kirby/Dick Ayers/Stan Lee
Story: Reed's got a meteorite. Ben rips open the meteorite to reveal an odd organic thing inside. This has nothing to do with the plot. Meanwhile, there's an odd glowing ball outside. Our heroes investigate, but nothing they can do affects the Ball. Eventually everyone get's pulled inside the Glowy Ball to discover that it's a Gateway to the Watcher's current Hideout. The Watcher (who isn't supposed to interfere, in case we forgot) warns the FF of the danger of the Molecule Man, a lowly nobody who after an Atomic Accident (damn Atomic stuff) gains the power to manipulate matter at an Atomic Level using his Wand (why does he need a Wand...anyone?). The FF return to New York to discover that the Molecule Man has taken their home, the Baxter Building, and is levitating it around Manhattan. MM declares himself ruler of the world. The FF attack MM, but his ability to manipulate matter allows him to counteract everything our heroes throw at him. The FF are forced to retreat. MM puts a giant glass dome around all of Manhattan and declares that no one leaves until the Four are brought to him. Thus, the FF become fugitives, but receive unexpected aid from the Yancy Street Gang (huh). The FF hide out at Alicia's place, and Reed formulates a plan. Reed summons the Molecule Man to Alicia's apartment. The Four aren't there, but there's some cool FF statues. MM decides to animate the statues just for the hell of it, but instead he gets zapped with Feedback. Turns out, the statues were really just the real Fantastic Four hiding under a thin layer of plaster, and that the Molecule Man can only affect inorganic matter. Trying to use his powers on Organic Matter hurts him. Before MM can recover, the Watcher's Glowing Ball shows up and sucks the Molecule Man away into... who knows? The Watcher shows up, declares that he's undone all of the damage MM did, that he's keeping the Molecule Man somewhere safe, and then praises our heroes. Huh?
Notes: Okay. Seriously. Every time the Watcher shows up, he claims that he CANNOT interfere in the lives of others, but EVERY TIME he shows up he does nothing but Interfere in the lives of others. In this issue alone he 1) Warns the FF of a dangerous threat, 2) Fixes all of the damage brought on by said threat, and 3) Essentially becomes Prison Warden for the now defeated threat. Y'know, I'm starting to think the Watcher is full of Crap. Other than that, this issue marks the debut of 4th String FF Villain, the Molecule Man, who I'm pretty sure eventually escapes his imprisoning and returns to harass our heroes later on down the road.
The Art: The Molecule Man himself is somewhat uninspired, but there's some neat stuff in here. Floating Buildings. Buildings turned into giant fans. Floating Magnets stretching Reed to his limit. A road being manipulated like it's paper (that's a good one). Sewer Pipes writhing like Snakes. And Newspaper forming a straight jack around the Invisible Woman. It's Kirby having fun with Comic Art. What's not to like?
Whatta I Think: On the one hand, it's cool to see Jack Kirby having fun with the Molecule Man's god-like powers. On the other hand, the Molecule Man is kind of a lame villain and the Watcher continues to be the Biggest Liar in Comics History. So, um, so-so issue.
Journey into Mystery featuring Thor and Tales of Asgard #101
Jack Kirby/George Bell/Stan Lee (same credits on both stories)
Main Story- Thor is pissed. The Avengers try to calm him down, but Thor just wants to be left alone. The Avengers let little baby Thor alone so he can sulk. Odin gets pissed that Thor's acting like a Bitch and decides to punish him by halving his power, removing his ability to create storms, and barring him from Asgard. Thor tries to return to Asgard, but Hiemdall says "Sorry, dude". Thor fights Hiemdall, but with his power diminished, loses. Loki sees an opportunity, and uses the Well of Time to locate Zarrko the Tomorrow Man. Loki fixes Zarrko's memory, and Zarrko immediately steals a Giant Mining Robot and goes back in time to the "present". The Robot wrecks up New York. Thor tries to stop it, but he's been pussyified and can't. Zarrko demands that Thor becomes his slave and travel with him to conquer the future, in exchange for sparing the present. Thor submits.
Tales of Asgard Story- The forces of Evil are invading. Young Thor wants to fight, but Hiemdall says "Go away, kid. This is man's work." Young Loki shows Thor a hole in the Asgardian defenses (which Loki himself created, of course), and leaves Thor alone to defend it. Big Surprise, that's where the forces of evil show up. Thor fights valiantly alone, but is overwhelmed and nearly turned into a tree. Luckily, Odin and the rest of the gang show up and save Thor's bacon. Thor feels bad that he was almost defeated, but Odin is proud that his boy was able to hold the line. In the end, we see Thor continuing to try to lift Mjlnor.
Notes: This issue is the First of Many, Many Times where Odin punishes Thor by taking away a portion of his powers. And, just like every time, a terrible menace shows up that Thor can't defeat without his full powers. Other than that, there's a bunch of villains that pop up in Tales of Asgard, but I didn't write them down in my notes. Oops.
The Art: Kirby's back full time, but I'm not thrilled with George Bell's inks. In the main story we get a giant robot ripping up buildings. That's kinda cool. The back up story not only features a bunch of cool monsters, but a really swinging Kirby style melee.
Whatta I Think: Well, it's nice to have Kirby on both stories, but Zarrko the Tomorrow Man sucks. Lame villain, and a weak story, honestly. On the other hand, Tales of Asgard continues to steal the show. So that's nice.
JIM feat. Thor & TOA #102-
Jack Kirby/Chic Stone (Thor Inks)/Paul Reinman (ToA Inks)/Stan Lee
Main Story- With Thor's power, Zarrko conquers the future. But he needs to conquer the Master Machine. Thor and Zarrko go to the Master Machine and beat a bunch of traps. Having got Zarrko to the Machine, Thor decides he's served the terms of his Oath, and attacks Zarrko. Zarrko tries to fight back, but c'mon. Thor beats Zarrko. Moving on.
TOA Story: Thor is now 18 (and looks like regular Thor) and seeks out the 3 Fates to see if he'll ever win the Hammer. They say he must Face Death to get it. Thor goes home and tries in vain to lift the hammer. An injured Balder shows up and says his sister Sif has been captured by Storm Giants. An enraged Thor lifts the Hammer over his head and set out to rescue Sif. Thor smashes some Storm Giants and fights his way to the court of an Evil King who wants to be a god. The King confesses that he gave Sif to Hela, Mistress of the Dead, in exchange for godhood. Thor goes to Hela and offers himself to her in exchange for Sif. Hela is floored by Thor's nobility and let's Thor and Sif go free.
Notes: Nothing worth noting on the main story, but Tales of Asgard features the debuts of Balder, Sif, and Hela. Honestly, I couldn't remember whether Kirby introduced Hela to Marvel Continuity or not. Apparently he did. Other than that, Balder and Sif both look and act completely differently in this story than they will later. This is not unusual for this time period. Note the difference between Hiemdall in his first appearance and how he will look later.
The Art: I'm running out of time (gotta get to work), so I don't have time to ramble about Chic Stone's Inks. I'll have plenty of Kirby/Stone comics to discuss later though, so we'll cover that stuff then.
Whatta I Think: Same as before. Lame main story. Killer back up.
Fantastic Four #19
Jack Kirby/Dick Ayers/Stan Lee
The Story: Reed finds some ancient hieroglyphics that depict a blind pharaoh who was cured by Radioactive Herbs. Obviously, this could help out poor, blind Alicia, so the FF hop on Dr. Doom's abandoned Time Platform, and with Alicia working the controls (she memorized the operation through touch), the FF zap back to the days of Ancient Egypt. Unfortunately, warriors that don't look like Egyptian warriors attack our heroes. The FF easily deal with the enemy until, mysteriously, something drains the FF of their strength and renders them feeble. The FF are brought before Pharaoh Rama Tut, who reveals he lived in the Far Future, but was bored. Rama found an old time machine left behind by his ancestor (hmmm...wonder who we know who has a time machine...) and used it to create a Time Machine that looks like the Sphinx of Ancient Egypt (why not?). Rama bounced around time stealing stuff, and eventually crash landed in Ancient Egypt. The crash blinded him, but the natives healed him with Radioactive Herbs (the herbs being irradiated by the crashing of Rama's own ship...huh?). Anyway, long story short Rama Tut has a Ray Gun that drains the FF of their wills, and they become slaves. Reed, Ben, and Johny are put to work, while Sue is outfitted to be Tut's Queen. Fortunately, the Thing reverts to Ben Grimm (who is unaffected by the Ray, of course), and escapes. Ben steals the Pharaoh's Gun and zaps Sue, freeing her, before reverting back to the Thing. Sue zaps Johny, who attacks Tut, who flees. Sue zaps Ben, and then the Torch finds Reed and zaps him. With our crew reunited, the Four pursue the Pharaoh, and, as usual, have to overcome a bunch of traps. Tut eventually escapes using a Time Travel Pod, leaving the Sphinx behind and destroying the guts of the statue to erase his presence in that era. The Four find the Optic Nerve Restorative (clearly marked on the vial) just in time for the Time Platform to return them to the present. Unfortunately, Radioactive Items can't travel through Time on Doom's Machine. So, Alicia has to stay blind. D'oh!
Notes: Not much to say. Crazy time travel fun.
The Art: Kirby's cover to this issue is one of those Truly Iconic Silver Age Covers. The heroes in a strange land/time enslaved by a mysterious menace. This theme was more common of DC (this kinda crap always happened to Superman and/or the JLA), but this is an instance of it happening to Marvel characters. Other than that, we get a progressively rockier Thing, and Reed turning himself into a Big Wheel and racing through the desert.
Whatta I Think: This is a very Silver Age Comic. Crazy, moderately pointless Time Travel. Gadgets and Traps. An ending that's kinda "We're back to square one". Pure Silver Age. Which is nice.
Fantastic Four #20
Jack Kirby/Dick Ayers/Stan Lee
Story: Reed's got a meteorite. Ben rips open the meteorite to reveal an odd organic thing inside. This has nothing to do with the plot. Meanwhile, there's an odd glowing ball outside. Our heroes investigate, but nothing they can do affects the Ball. Eventually everyone get's pulled inside the Glowy Ball to discover that it's a Gateway to the Watcher's current Hideout. The Watcher (who isn't supposed to interfere, in case we forgot) warns the FF of the danger of the Molecule Man, a lowly nobody who after an Atomic Accident (damn Atomic stuff) gains the power to manipulate matter at an Atomic Level using his Wand (why does he need a Wand...anyone?). The FF return to New York to discover that the Molecule Man has taken their home, the Baxter Building, and is levitating it around Manhattan. MM declares himself ruler of the world. The FF attack MM, but his ability to manipulate matter allows him to counteract everything our heroes throw at him. The FF are forced to retreat. MM puts a giant glass dome around all of Manhattan and declares that no one leaves until the Four are brought to him. Thus, the FF become fugitives, but receive unexpected aid from the Yancy Street Gang (huh). The FF hide out at Alicia's place, and Reed formulates a plan. Reed summons the Molecule Man to Alicia's apartment. The Four aren't there, but there's some cool FF statues. MM decides to animate the statues just for the hell of it, but instead he gets zapped with Feedback. Turns out, the statues were really just the real Fantastic Four hiding under a thin layer of plaster, and that the Molecule Man can only affect inorganic matter. Trying to use his powers on Organic Matter hurts him. Before MM can recover, the Watcher's Glowing Ball shows up and sucks the Molecule Man away into... who knows? The Watcher shows up, declares that he's undone all of the damage MM did, that he's keeping the Molecule Man somewhere safe, and then praises our heroes. Huh?
Notes: Okay. Seriously. Every time the Watcher shows up, he claims that he CANNOT interfere in the lives of others, but EVERY TIME he shows up he does nothing but Interfere in the lives of others. In this issue alone he 1) Warns the FF of a dangerous threat, 2) Fixes all of the damage brought on by said threat, and 3) Essentially becomes Prison Warden for the now defeated threat. Y'know, I'm starting to think the Watcher is full of Crap. Other than that, this issue marks the debut of 4th String FF Villain, the Molecule Man, who I'm pretty sure eventually escapes his imprisoning and returns to harass our heroes later on down the road.
The Art: The Molecule Man himself is somewhat uninspired, but there's some neat stuff in here. Floating Buildings. Buildings turned into giant fans. Floating Magnets stretching Reed to his limit. A road being manipulated like it's paper (that's a good one). Sewer Pipes writhing like Snakes. And Newspaper forming a straight jack around the Invisible Woman. It's Kirby having fun with Comic Art. What's not to like?
Whatta I Think: On the one hand, it's cool to see Jack Kirby having fun with the Molecule Man's god-like powers. On the other hand, the Molecule Man is kind of a lame villain and the Watcher continues to be the Biggest Liar in Comics History. So, um, so-so issue.
Journey into Mystery featuring Thor and Tales of Asgard #101
Jack Kirby/George Bell/Stan Lee (same credits on both stories)
Main Story- Thor is pissed. The Avengers try to calm him down, but Thor just wants to be left alone. The Avengers let little baby Thor alone so he can sulk. Odin gets pissed that Thor's acting like a Bitch and decides to punish him by halving his power, removing his ability to create storms, and barring him from Asgard. Thor tries to return to Asgard, but Hiemdall says "Sorry, dude". Thor fights Hiemdall, but with his power diminished, loses. Loki sees an opportunity, and uses the Well of Time to locate Zarrko the Tomorrow Man. Loki fixes Zarrko's memory, and Zarrko immediately steals a Giant Mining Robot and goes back in time to the "present". The Robot wrecks up New York. Thor tries to stop it, but he's been pussyified and can't. Zarrko demands that Thor becomes his slave and travel with him to conquer the future, in exchange for sparing the present. Thor submits.
Tales of Asgard Story- The forces of Evil are invading. Young Thor wants to fight, but Hiemdall says "Go away, kid. This is man's work." Young Loki shows Thor a hole in the Asgardian defenses (which Loki himself created, of course), and leaves Thor alone to defend it. Big Surprise, that's where the forces of evil show up. Thor fights valiantly alone, but is overwhelmed and nearly turned into a tree. Luckily, Odin and the rest of the gang show up and save Thor's bacon. Thor feels bad that he was almost defeated, but Odin is proud that his boy was able to hold the line. In the end, we see Thor continuing to try to lift Mjlnor.
Notes: This issue is the First of Many, Many Times where Odin punishes Thor by taking away a portion of his powers. And, just like every time, a terrible menace shows up that Thor can't defeat without his full powers. Other than that, there's a bunch of villains that pop up in Tales of Asgard, but I didn't write them down in my notes. Oops.
The Art: Kirby's back full time, but I'm not thrilled with George Bell's inks. In the main story we get a giant robot ripping up buildings. That's kinda cool. The back up story not only features a bunch of cool monsters, but a really swinging Kirby style melee.
Whatta I Think: Well, it's nice to have Kirby on both stories, but Zarrko the Tomorrow Man sucks. Lame villain, and a weak story, honestly. On the other hand, Tales of Asgard continues to steal the show. So that's nice.
JIM feat. Thor & TOA #102-
Jack Kirby/Chic Stone (Thor Inks)/Paul Reinman (ToA Inks)/Stan Lee
Main Story- With Thor's power, Zarrko conquers the future. But he needs to conquer the Master Machine. Thor and Zarrko go to the Master Machine and beat a bunch of traps. Having got Zarrko to the Machine, Thor decides he's served the terms of his Oath, and attacks Zarrko. Zarrko tries to fight back, but c'mon. Thor beats Zarrko. Moving on.
TOA Story: Thor is now 18 (and looks like regular Thor) and seeks out the 3 Fates to see if he'll ever win the Hammer. They say he must Face Death to get it. Thor goes home and tries in vain to lift the hammer. An injured Balder shows up and says his sister Sif has been captured by Storm Giants. An enraged Thor lifts the Hammer over his head and set out to rescue Sif. Thor smashes some Storm Giants and fights his way to the court of an Evil King who wants to be a god. The King confesses that he gave Sif to Hela, Mistress of the Dead, in exchange for godhood. Thor goes to Hela and offers himself to her in exchange for Sif. Hela is floored by Thor's nobility and let's Thor and Sif go free.
Notes: Nothing worth noting on the main story, but Tales of Asgard features the debuts of Balder, Sif, and Hela. Honestly, I couldn't remember whether Kirby introduced Hela to Marvel Continuity or not. Apparently he did. Other than that, Balder and Sif both look and act completely differently in this story than they will later. This is not unusual for this time period. Note the difference between Hiemdall in his first appearance and how he will look later.
The Art: I'm running out of time (gotta get to work), so I don't have time to ramble about Chic Stone's Inks. I'll have plenty of Kirby/Stone comics to discuss later though, so we'll cover that stuff then.
Whatta I Think: Same as before. Lame main story. Killer back up.
Sunday, December 16, 2012
Four & Thor 9
Fantastic Four #17
Story/Pencils: Jack Kirby. Inks: Dick Ayers. Plot/Dialogue: Stan Lee.
Story: Dr. Doom is on the loose, and our heroes are doing everything in their power to find him (Reed even builds a Radar designed to detect people wearing a lot of metal over flesh. I'm not joking). Eventually they give up the search, and get ready to relax and hit the town. Unfortunately, FF fans are mobbing the building. A friendly janitor helps the FF escape, and shakes their hands. WAIT! That wasn't a Janitor! That was Dr. Doom in disguise! Turns out, Doom put a tiny little disc on all of the FF's hands. Doom releases these bizarre looking funny looking creatures he calls "Followers". The Followers literally follow around the various members of the FF until they finally get fed up and regroup at HQ. Reed discovers the discs, and after removing them the Followers vanish. Doom decides he's had enough fun screwing with the FF, so he uses a machine to lift Alicia Masters into the air, pulling her into his secret flying base hidden in the clouds (crazy). Needless to say, this upsets Ben just a bit. Anyway, Doom threatens to do all sorts of bad stuff to New York if the FF try to stop him, and, just in case that's not enough, he reminds them that he's got Alicia too. Doom then puts in a call to JFK, demanding a Cabinet Position (seems a little low key for Doom, really), or else. When the Prez doesn't give in, Doom starts wrecking havoc all over the place. Don't panic, though, Reed has a plan. Reed has found Doom's flying fortress, but there's one problem: It's surrounded by Disintegrator Rays that are specifically mapped to the FF's individual atomic structures (which Doom discovered thanks to the information those pesky Followers provided (see, there was a point to those stupid things)). There's only one solution, turn the Thing back into Ben Grimm so he can slip past the Rays. So, that's what they do. Ben, flying in a weird looking ship (more on that later), barely slips through the Ray Defenses, turns back into the Thing, and wrecks up the Controls so the other members of the FF can safely enter on their...Magnet Ship (not kidding, it's a jet with a big U shaped Magnet on the end of it). Our heroes split up to cover more ground. The Human Torch gets caught in a centrifuge, nearly dousing his flame. He unleashes one final massive burst of flame, causing the centrifuge to destruct. Reed gets caught in a room that instantly fills with quick drying cement. Using his flexible body, Reed slips through the pores of the cement and makes his way under a tiny crack in the door. Ben falls down a trap door, but manages to climb his way out. Doom sends out his power spheres, which are attracted to heat. The spheres engulf Reed, Ben, and Johny, and send them off to another dimension, never to return! Well, that would have happened, except that Johny used Flame Illusions to lure the Spheres Away. Anyway, the three attack Doom, but Doom uses a Force Screen to stop them. Meanwhile, Sue finds and rescues Alicia. Sue confronts Doom. Doom tries to use a series of Moving Steel Bars to trap the Invisible Woman, but she outmaneuvers him. The entire FF catch up to Doom, but not wanting to be captured, Doom chucks himself out of an escape hatch and seemingly falls to his...um...Doom.
Notes: This is one of the stranger Dr. Doom issues. Doom has so many odd devices and traps in this issue. I mean, those Followers are weird. And speaking of weird... there's a scene where Ben invades Doom's ship. And, well, Ben's ship kinda looks like... well, it looks like a Sperm cell. And, Doom's ship... kinda looks like an Egg. I can't imagine Kirby & Lee were intentionally throwing Sex Education into an issue of the Fantastic Four... still, it's a pretty weird coincidence. Also, the metal detecting radar and the Magnet Ship are kinda silly. And Doom as a Janitor? Really?
Oh, and the Thing is looking less like Clay and more like solid rock.
The Art: Dick Ayers's blorpy inks are really starting to get old. How long before Chic Stone takes over? Still a ways a way? Sigh. Anyway, lots of weird looking stuff in this one, so there's that.
Whatta I Think: On the one hand, Dr. Doom continues to be the premier FF villain. The sheer deluge of evil schemes and devices Doom throws at the Four in this issue alone would be enough to pad out an entire comic book mini-series in our modern time. On the other hand, woo, this issue is silly and odd. Probably the weakest Doom issue to date. Also, Doom's "Death" in this issue is a bit of a repeat from the Apartment in Space Issue. Not bad, but not great. Oh, and this is a rare instance where not only does Sue Storm NOT get captured, she actually saves the Day. Good for her.
Fantastic Four #18
by Jack Kirby, Dick Ayers, and Stan Lee
The Story: The FF go about their normal business, free of the burden of worrying about Doom's latest scheme. Meanwhile, in Space, the Skrulls are still pissed about Reed defeating them way back in Issue 2. So, they devise a way to conquer the Four and create the Super Skrull. This particular Skrull has all of the Powers of the Fantastic Four... AMPLIFIED! The Super Skrull goes to Earth and declares the planet to be conquered. The Four fight the Skrull, but the Skrull's amplified powers allow him to counter all of their abilities. Throw in his natural shapeshifting abilities, and the FF are a smidge outgunned. The Four retreat and regroup so Reed can come up with a new plan. Reed figures that the Super Skrull's powers are coming from an outside source, so he builds a jammer. The FF challenge the Super Skrull to a fight on an abandoned, rocky island. Reed, Ben, and Johny dogpile the Skrull, but between his Amped Up Powers, and the fact that he's also got... HYPNOTISM (man, did every villain have hypnotic powers back then?), the three can't defeat the lone Skrull. Luckily, it was just a stall tactic to allow an invisible Sue to sneak up on the Skrull and plant Reed's Jammer. The Jammer works, blocking the Super Skrull's powers. The Skrull gets ticked at Sue and tries to chase down her invisible form, but ends up falling into a crater. Johny then seals the Super Skrull inside the crater, and that's that.
Notes: This is a pretty straightforward story compared to a lot of what we've been getting. The most notable thing we get this issue is the debut of the Super Skrull. Obviously, I could mention that the Skrull has appeared on Cartoons and Toys (maybe a video game or two as well...not sure, I'd have to research that one). The Super Skrull has also been a mid-level holiday villain (and occasional anti-hero) in the Marvel U for a long time, and has even played a part in a handful of major crossovers, not to mention he served as an inspiration for the army of Super Skrulls that appeared in the "Secret Invasion" cross over. But for me, the Super Skrull holds a special place in my imagination, because the Super Skrull was a major supporting character in several of the Silver Surfer stories I read when I was growing up. So I've always been fond of the character for that reason.
The Art: Dick Ayers's Inks do no favors for the Skrulls. Still, there's some neat-o Jack Kirby stuff going on here, with the Skrull doing lots of crazy stuff with his powers. My favorite moment is when the Super Skrull turns his head into a literal Battering Ram (complete with Ram's Head) and smashes Ben all the way out to the Empire State Building. Kirby's fights (which were already better than everybody else's fight scenes) just keep getting better and better.
Whatta I Think: Again, a very straight forward episode, compared to the previous issues. The introduction of a new villain who will stick around for years to come, and a pretty good fight scene or two. Plus, Sue saves the day for the second issue in a row, and doesn't get captured! Now, if only we could get someone else on inks... Oh, and Ben is almost full-on Rocky now.
Journey Into Mystery Featuring Thor & Tales of Asgard #99
Main Story: Art- Don Heck, Story: Stan Lee.
Tales of Asgard: Story/Art: Jack Kirby (no Inker credited), Dialogue/Plot: Stan Lee.
Main Story: We are briefly introduced to the horrible Mr. Hyde. Thor still wants to marry Jane Foster, but Odin still says no. Odin says that if Jane Foster can prove herself worthy, he'll make her an immortal. So, there's some hope there. Meanwhile, we get the origin of Mr. Hyde. Originally a crook named Calvin Zabo, Zabo wanted to get a job working as Dr. Blake's assistant so he could rob Blake blind, but Blake didn't hire him. Zabo got pissed and made a nasty concoction that turned him into the monstrous Mr. Hyde (yep). Turns out that even Hyde's fingerprints are different than Zabo's, so that gives Mr. Hyde carte blanche to wreck havoc and commit crimes. Hyde attacks Blake at his office and chucks Don out of a window. Blake manages to stamp his cane against the side of the building, turning him into Thor. Hyde escapes. Then, on the last couple of pages, Thor robs a bank. Huh?
Tales of Asgard Story: It's Odin vs. the Trolls! Odin stomps the Trolls, who reveal the location of their pal Surtur. Odin goes after Surtur, and the massive fire demon turns his hand into a Hydra, and attacks Odin. Odin counters by summoning Icy Meteors from Outer Space, which damages Surtur. Surtur counters by traveling to Earth, and ripping a giant chunk of rock out of the middle of the Earth. This becomes the Moon. Odin creates the Rainbow Bridge, Bifrost, in order to get to Earth faster, and upon arrival, uses his magic sword to make the Earth begin spinning on its rotation. The Rotation of the Earth traps Surtur in the Earth's core (which is where the heat at the center of the earth comes from, of course). Surtur tries to appease Odin by giving him a winged horse. Probably didn't work.
Notes: Alright, ladies and gentlemen, in this issue we get the introduction of the most important Thor villain Not Created by Jack Kirby, namely Mr. Hyde. Mr. Hyde not only pops up later when Kirby takes the strip over full time, but he also proves to be a rather formidable and recurring villain in the greater Marvel U. Mr. Hyde not only bedevils Daredevil quite a lot down the road, but Hyde is probably best known as being a member of the Masters of Evil group that nearly conquered the Avengers. I think Mr. Hyde nearly beat Hercules to death. I think. Anyway, he's a pretty significant villain, as far as B-Stringers go. Other than that, this is the first time that it's revealed that Odin can make normal folks into gods. This will actually come back up later.
Meanwhile, in Tales of Asgard, Trolls! Surtur! The origin of the Moon! The origin of Bifrost!
The Art: Again, Don Heck is a solid enough artist, so not bad on that front. Kirby's art on Tales of Asgard is awesome. Awesome, awesome, awesome.
Whatta I Think: The introduction of Mr. Hyde is fairly significant, but otherwise the story is a hunk of crap that makes no damn sense. But who cares? We've got Tales of Asgard! TOA is AWESOME! I lub eet!
JIM feat Thor & TOA #100-
Main story- Art: Don Heck. Story: Stan Lee.
TOA- Story/Pencils: Jack Kirby, Inks: P. Reinman (who?). Plot/Dialogue: Stan Lee.
Main Story: After the confusing last couple of pages of last issue, everyone hates Thor now, and Thor can't figure out why (hey, man, I'm confused too). Oh well, Dr. Blake takes Jane out to dinner for her birthday. Hyde follows them and kidnaps them (at gunpoint, which makes no sense considering he's strong enough to easily kill them both with his bare hands), taking them back to his hideout. Hyde ties up Dr. Blake and puts a time bomb next to him to ensure that Jane Foster won't get out of line. Hyde takes Jane off with him. Mr. Hyde wants to steal a Polaris Sub. Meanwhile, Blake finally gets to his cane and becomes Thor. Thor catches up to Hyde, and they fight on and inside the Nuclear Sub. Jane repeatedly interferes in the fight, because she's scared that if Hyde is defeated, Dr. Blake will get blowed up (oh, dramatic irony). This allows Hyde to escape. A cop reveals to Thor that they figured out that Hyde was impersonating Thor so everyone's cool with Thor again (wait? When did this happen? What?). Meanwhile, after observing Jane's actions from Asgard, Odin declares that there's no way he's letting Jane Foster become a god. Screw that bitch! In Stan Lee's Marvel U, even Thor can't win for losing.
TOA Story: Young Thor (with a sword and not his hammer yet) and Young Loki see a couple of Storm Giants stealing the goddess Iduna's Golden Apples. They sneak into the Storm Giant's lair (Note: Thor and Loki are the size of bugs compared to the Storm Giants), and Loki promptly shoves Thor into the open where he's discovered. Thor cuts down a table leg and chucks a (giant to him) Pepper Shaker at the Giants, causing lots of confusion. In the end, though, the Storm Giants are too big and capture Thor. Wanting to save his own skin, Loki creates a smoke screen from the fireplace, allowing Thor to escape. On the roof of the Giants' Castle, Thor and Loki find Agnar, the King of the Eagles, who is not only a prisoner of the Giants, but also just happens to have the bag of golden apples on his back. Thor cuts the bird loose, and the two Asgardians escape. Back home, we see Young Thor attempting to lift Mjolnr.
Notes: Nothing worth noting on the main story. The back up has Storm Giants and a Giant Eagle. Nice.
The Art: Main story- eh. Back Up- Wonderful. Storm Giants and a Giant Eagle. Wonderful.
Whatta I Think: I always like how Don Heck at least seemed to be trying, but this comic is garbage. Again, who cares? Tales of Asgard is awesome! Storm Giants and a Giant Eagle!
A screwy Dr. Doom story, the introduction of the Super Skrull and Dr. Hyde, and two KILLER installments of Tales of Asgard. Not bad. Here's the best news: Jack Kirby takes over Thor full time again next issue. (Unfortunately, we get a two issue story arc with Zarrko the Tomorrow Man. Booo!)
Story/Pencils: Jack Kirby. Inks: Dick Ayers. Plot/Dialogue: Stan Lee.
Story: Dr. Doom is on the loose, and our heroes are doing everything in their power to find him (Reed even builds a Radar designed to detect people wearing a lot of metal over flesh. I'm not joking). Eventually they give up the search, and get ready to relax and hit the town. Unfortunately, FF fans are mobbing the building. A friendly janitor helps the FF escape, and shakes their hands. WAIT! That wasn't a Janitor! That was Dr. Doom in disguise! Turns out, Doom put a tiny little disc on all of the FF's hands. Doom releases these bizarre looking funny looking creatures he calls "Followers". The Followers literally follow around the various members of the FF until they finally get fed up and regroup at HQ. Reed discovers the discs, and after removing them the Followers vanish. Doom decides he's had enough fun screwing with the FF, so he uses a machine to lift Alicia Masters into the air, pulling her into his secret flying base hidden in the clouds (crazy). Needless to say, this upsets Ben just a bit. Anyway, Doom threatens to do all sorts of bad stuff to New York if the FF try to stop him, and, just in case that's not enough, he reminds them that he's got Alicia too. Doom then puts in a call to JFK, demanding a Cabinet Position (seems a little low key for Doom, really), or else. When the Prez doesn't give in, Doom starts wrecking havoc all over the place. Don't panic, though, Reed has a plan. Reed has found Doom's flying fortress, but there's one problem: It's surrounded by Disintegrator Rays that are specifically mapped to the FF's individual atomic structures (which Doom discovered thanks to the information those pesky Followers provided (see, there was a point to those stupid things)). There's only one solution, turn the Thing back into Ben Grimm so he can slip past the Rays. So, that's what they do. Ben, flying in a weird looking ship (more on that later), barely slips through the Ray Defenses, turns back into the Thing, and wrecks up the Controls so the other members of the FF can safely enter on their...Magnet Ship (not kidding, it's a jet with a big U shaped Magnet on the end of it). Our heroes split up to cover more ground. The Human Torch gets caught in a centrifuge, nearly dousing his flame. He unleashes one final massive burst of flame, causing the centrifuge to destruct. Reed gets caught in a room that instantly fills with quick drying cement. Using his flexible body, Reed slips through the pores of the cement and makes his way under a tiny crack in the door. Ben falls down a trap door, but manages to climb his way out. Doom sends out his power spheres, which are attracted to heat. The spheres engulf Reed, Ben, and Johny, and send them off to another dimension, never to return! Well, that would have happened, except that Johny used Flame Illusions to lure the Spheres Away. Anyway, the three attack Doom, but Doom uses a Force Screen to stop them. Meanwhile, Sue finds and rescues Alicia. Sue confronts Doom. Doom tries to use a series of Moving Steel Bars to trap the Invisible Woman, but she outmaneuvers him. The entire FF catch up to Doom, but not wanting to be captured, Doom chucks himself out of an escape hatch and seemingly falls to his...um...Doom.
Notes: This is one of the stranger Dr. Doom issues. Doom has so many odd devices and traps in this issue. I mean, those Followers are weird. And speaking of weird... there's a scene where Ben invades Doom's ship. And, well, Ben's ship kinda looks like... well, it looks like a Sperm cell. And, Doom's ship... kinda looks like an Egg. I can't imagine Kirby & Lee were intentionally throwing Sex Education into an issue of the Fantastic Four... still, it's a pretty weird coincidence. Also, the metal detecting radar and the Magnet Ship are kinda silly. And Doom as a Janitor? Really?
Oh, and the Thing is looking less like Clay and more like solid rock.
The Art: Dick Ayers's blorpy inks are really starting to get old. How long before Chic Stone takes over? Still a ways a way? Sigh. Anyway, lots of weird looking stuff in this one, so there's that.
Whatta I Think: On the one hand, Dr. Doom continues to be the premier FF villain. The sheer deluge of evil schemes and devices Doom throws at the Four in this issue alone would be enough to pad out an entire comic book mini-series in our modern time. On the other hand, woo, this issue is silly and odd. Probably the weakest Doom issue to date. Also, Doom's "Death" in this issue is a bit of a repeat from the Apartment in Space Issue. Not bad, but not great. Oh, and this is a rare instance where not only does Sue Storm NOT get captured, she actually saves the Day. Good for her.
Fantastic Four #18
by Jack Kirby, Dick Ayers, and Stan Lee
The Story: The FF go about their normal business, free of the burden of worrying about Doom's latest scheme. Meanwhile, in Space, the Skrulls are still pissed about Reed defeating them way back in Issue 2. So, they devise a way to conquer the Four and create the Super Skrull. This particular Skrull has all of the Powers of the Fantastic Four... AMPLIFIED! The Super Skrull goes to Earth and declares the planet to be conquered. The Four fight the Skrull, but the Skrull's amplified powers allow him to counter all of their abilities. Throw in his natural shapeshifting abilities, and the FF are a smidge outgunned. The Four retreat and regroup so Reed can come up with a new plan. Reed figures that the Super Skrull's powers are coming from an outside source, so he builds a jammer. The FF challenge the Super Skrull to a fight on an abandoned, rocky island. Reed, Ben, and Johny dogpile the Skrull, but between his Amped Up Powers, and the fact that he's also got... HYPNOTISM (man, did every villain have hypnotic powers back then?), the three can't defeat the lone Skrull. Luckily, it was just a stall tactic to allow an invisible Sue to sneak up on the Skrull and plant Reed's Jammer. The Jammer works, blocking the Super Skrull's powers. The Skrull gets ticked at Sue and tries to chase down her invisible form, but ends up falling into a crater. Johny then seals the Super Skrull inside the crater, and that's that.
Notes: This is a pretty straightforward story compared to a lot of what we've been getting. The most notable thing we get this issue is the debut of the Super Skrull. Obviously, I could mention that the Skrull has appeared on Cartoons and Toys (maybe a video game or two as well...not sure, I'd have to research that one). The Super Skrull has also been a mid-level holiday villain (and occasional anti-hero) in the Marvel U for a long time, and has even played a part in a handful of major crossovers, not to mention he served as an inspiration for the army of Super Skrulls that appeared in the "Secret Invasion" cross over. But for me, the Super Skrull holds a special place in my imagination, because the Super Skrull was a major supporting character in several of the Silver Surfer stories I read when I was growing up. So I've always been fond of the character for that reason.
The Art: Dick Ayers's Inks do no favors for the Skrulls. Still, there's some neat-o Jack Kirby stuff going on here, with the Skrull doing lots of crazy stuff with his powers. My favorite moment is when the Super Skrull turns his head into a literal Battering Ram (complete with Ram's Head) and smashes Ben all the way out to the Empire State Building. Kirby's fights (which were already better than everybody else's fight scenes) just keep getting better and better.
Whatta I Think: Again, a very straight forward episode, compared to the previous issues. The introduction of a new villain who will stick around for years to come, and a pretty good fight scene or two. Plus, Sue saves the day for the second issue in a row, and doesn't get captured! Now, if only we could get someone else on inks... Oh, and Ben is almost full-on Rocky now.
Journey Into Mystery Featuring Thor & Tales of Asgard #99
Main Story: Art- Don Heck, Story: Stan Lee.
Tales of Asgard: Story/Art: Jack Kirby (no Inker credited), Dialogue/Plot: Stan Lee.
Main Story: We are briefly introduced to the horrible Mr. Hyde. Thor still wants to marry Jane Foster, but Odin still says no. Odin says that if Jane Foster can prove herself worthy, he'll make her an immortal. So, there's some hope there. Meanwhile, we get the origin of Mr. Hyde. Originally a crook named Calvin Zabo, Zabo wanted to get a job working as Dr. Blake's assistant so he could rob Blake blind, but Blake didn't hire him. Zabo got pissed and made a nasty concoction that turned him into the monstrous Mr. Hyde (yep). Turns out that even Hyde's fingerprints are different than Zabo's, so that gives Mr. Hyde carte blanche to wreck havoc and commit crimes. Hyde attacks Blake at his office and chucks Don out of a window. Blake manages to stamp his cane against the side of the building, turning him into Thor. Hyde escapes. Then, on the last couple of pages, Thor robs a bank. Huh?
Tales of Asgard Story: It's Odin vs. the Trolls! Odin stomps the Trolls, who reveal the location of their pal Surtur. Odin goes after Surtur, and the massive fire demon turns his hand into a Hydra, and attacks Odin. Odin counters by summoning Icy Meteors from Outer Space, which damages Surtur. Surtur counters by traveling to Earth, and ripping a giant chunk of rock out of the middle of the Earth. This becomes the Moon. Odin creates the Rainbow Bridge, Bifrost, in order to get to Earth faster, and upon arrival, uses his magic sword to make the Earth begin spinning on its rotation. The Rotation of the Earth traps Surtur in the Earth's core (which is where the heat at the center of the earth comes from, of course). Surtur tries to appease Odin by giving him a winged horse. Probably didn't work.
Notes: Alright, ladies and gentlemen, in this issue we get the introduction of the most important Thor villain Not Created by Jack Kirby, namely Mr. Hyde. Mr. Hyde not only pops up later when Kirby takes the strip over full time, but he also proves to be a rather formidable and recurring villain in the greater Marvel U. Mr. Hyde not only bedevils Daredevil quite a lot down the road, but Hyde is probably best known as being a member of the Masters of Evil group that nearly conquered the Avengers. I think Mr. Hyde nearly beat Hercules to death. I think. Anyway, he's a pretty significant villain, as far as B-Stringers go. Other than that, this is the first time that it's revealed that Odin can make normal folks into gods. This will actually come back up later.
Meanwhile, in Tales of Asgard, Trolls! Surtur! The origin of the Moon! The origin of Bifrost!
The Art: Again, Don Heck is a solid enough artist, so not bad on that front. Kirby's art on Tales of Asgard is awesome. Awesome, awesome, awesome.
Whatta I Think: The introduction of Mr. Hyde is fairly significant, but otherwise the story is a hunk of crap that makes no damn sense. But who cares? We've got Tales of Asgard! TOA is AWESOME! I lub eet!
JIM feat Thor & TOA #100-
Main story- Art: Don Heck. Story: Stan Lee.
TOA- Story/Pencils: Jack Kirby, Inks: P. Reinman (who?). Plot/Dialogue: Stan Lee.
Main Story: After the confusing last couple of pages of last issue, everyone hates Thor now, and Thor can't figure out why (hey, man, I'm confused too). Oh well, Dr. Blake takes Jane out to dinner for her birthday. Hyde follows them and kidnaps them (at gunpoint, which makes no sense considering he's strong enough to easily kill them both with his bare hands), taking them back to his hideout. Hyde ties up Dr. Blake and puts a time bomb next to him to ensure that Jane Foster won't get out of line. Hyde takes Jane off with him. Mr. Hyde wants to steal a Polaris Sub. Meanwhile, Blake finally gets to his cane and becomes Thor. Thor catches up to Hyde, and they fight on and inside the Nuclear Sub. Jane repeatedly interferes in the fight, because she's scared that if Hyde is defeated, Dr. Blake will get blowed up (oh, dramatic irony). This allows Hyde to escape. A cop reveals to Thor that they figured out that Hyde was impersonating Thor so everyone's cool with Thor again (wait? When did this happen? What?). Meanwhile, after observing Jane's actions from Asgard, Odin declares that there's no way he's letting Jane Foster become a god. Screw that bitch! In Stan Lee's Marvel U, even Thor can't win for losing.
TOA Story: Young Thor (with a sword and not his hammer yet) and Young Loki see a couple of Storm Giants stealing the goddess Iduna's Golden Apples. They sneak into the Storm Giant's lair (Note: Thor and Loki are the size of bugs compared to the Storm Giants), and Loki promptly shoves Thor into the open where he's discovered. Thor cuts down a table leg and chucks a (giant to him) Pepper Shaker at the Giants, causing lots of confusion. In the end, though, the Storm Giants are too big and capture Thor. Wanting to save his own skin, Loki creates a smoke screen from the fireplace, allowing Thor to escape. On the roof of the Giants' Castle, Thor and Loki find Agnar, the King of the Eagles, who is not only a prisoner of the Giants, but also just happens to have the bag of golden apples on his back. Thor cuts the bird loose, and the two Asgardians escape. Back home, we see Young Thor attempting to lift Mjolnr.
Notes: Nothing worth noting on the main story. The back up has Storm Giants and a Giant Eagle. Nice.
The Art: Main story- eh. Back Up- Wonderful. Storm Giants and a Giant Eagle. Wonderful.
Whatta I Think: I always like how Don Heck at least seemed to be trying, but this comic is garbage. Again, who cares? Tales of Asgard is awesome! Storm Giants and a Giant Eagle!
A screwy Dr. Doom story, the introduction of the Super Skrull and Dr. Hyde, and two KILLER installments of Tales of Asgard. Not bad. Here's the best news: Jack Kirby takes over Thor full time again next issue. (Unfortunately, we get a two issue story arc with Zarrko the Tomorrow Man. Booo!)
Saturday, December 15, 2012
Four & Thor 8
Fantastic Four #15
Story/Art: Jack Kirby, Inks: Dick Ayers, Plot/Script: Stan Lee
Story: Our heroes are out and about on the town doing their thing (and the Thing himself is being tormented by the dreaded Yancy Street Gang) when Reed summons them to HQ because there's reports of all of the crime bosses from across the US congregating in the US under the auspices of a new leader. That leader is the Mad Thinker, a super genius dude who plots meticulous, heavily calculated plans that never fail. Realizing that the only threat to his plans to conquer New York is the Fantastic Four, the Thinker lures all of the members off on various side gigs (Reed gets a fancy science job, Sue becomes an actress, Ben a wrestler, and Johny joins the circus), causing them to split up and abandon their HQ. The Thinker and his gang conquer the FF's HQ. Meanwhile, our Heroes get bored with their new gigs and reunite, only to find that their home is now covered in crystal. The Mad Thinker challenges the FF. The Four storm the building, only to run into trouble with all of Reed's various gadgets, now being used by the Thinker's gang. There's trouble with Vibro-Guns, Trippy Gas, and ultimately, the Mad Thinker's Awesome Android, built from Reed's own design. The Android can adapt to his situation at will, but Reed knows where the shut off switch is, so good night Android. The FF confront the Thinker, who tries to hold them at bay with more of Reed's weapons (seriously Reed, how many Deadly Weapons do you just leave lying around???). Unfortunately for the Thinker, the FF's mailman shows up, delivering a package for Reed, and presses the doorbell, which has been rigged up to a device that deactivates all of the equipment in Reed's lab. The Thinker is rendered defenceless and is sent to jail. Turns out, the Thinker just couldn't think of everything.
Notes: The only real note I have on this one is the Drawing of the Thing in a Tutu that declares "The Thing is a Sissy", courtesy of those pesky Yancy Streeters. We never actually see the Yancy Street Gang, but they do show up to taunt the Thing and throw stuff at him. Other than that, the illustrations of the Thinker's various crimes are kinda neat (at one point, an organ grinder's monkey proves to be the key to the Thinker's victory).
The Art: There's some neat stuff here. The scene with the Gas that alters people's perception is pretty cool, and Reed solves the problem by turning into a Giant Fan, which is also cool. Other than that, the Awesome Android, with his Biscuit Shaped Head, walks the very thin line between being completely Awesome and completely Stupid at the same time. Which is what is cool about a lot of Kirby's work in the first place.
Whatta I Think: Honestly, this issue's kinda boring. There's a lot of fumbling around and build up, but the fast moving sequence at the end helps to revive this otherwise so-so issue. Don't worry kiddies, we get Dr. Doom next issue.
Fantastic Four #16
Story/Art: Jack Kirby. Inks: Dick Ayers. Plot/Script: Stan Lee
Story: The FF have been randomly shrinking every so often. Needless to say, randomly shrinking can be a dangerous thing, so our heroes call up Ant-Man to help them out. Ant-Man swings by the FF's HQ to give them a couple of vials of Shrinking and Growing Fluid, then bolts. Our heroes go about their business, but begin hearing a tiny voice warning of Dr. Doom. Reed decides enough is enough, and has everyone douse themselves in Shrinking Fluid. Our heroes shrink down into a tiny world that looks kinda like Medieval Europe. Obviously, Doom is the ruler, having conquered the world with a single shrink ray (man, to already be microscopic, then to get shrunk some more. Sucky). The FF get shrunk, but still put up a pretty good fight until Sue gets captured (jeez, Sue, stop getting captured already), forcing our heroes to surrender. The FF get dumped into the dungeon with the former King and Princess. The Princess, of course, was who sent out the messages to our heroes. The Four discover that Doom has summoned the lizard-like alien Tok from a nearby planet, and plans to sell the FF into slavery. Not cool. Meanwhile, in Our Larger World, Ant Man stops by FF HQ, and seeing the shattered vial of Shrink Fluid, decides to follow the Four into the Microworld. Sadly, Ant-Man is quickly captured. The FF manage to escape the dungeon and revert to ... Full Size (kinda?). A fight breaks out, and the FF mop up the floor with Doom's soldiers. When the Tok Ship shows up, the Thing grabs a massive tower, and uses it as a baseball bat to knock the Tok Ship back into space. Seeing he's outgunned, Dr. Doom flees, Growing back to our Normal Sized World. Meanwhile, the FF defeat Doom's men and reinstall the King and Princess as rulers. Time to get back to Normal Size! Huzzah!
Notes: Worlds within worlds! Entire Microscopic Universes so small we can't even perceive them! Kirby Crazy all the way! Other than that, Ant-Man is actually kinda pointless in this comic. I mean, he really serves no purpose besides being there to hype his own book. Also, we get a one panel cameo by the Wasp. Also, I think it's funny that the Microworld looks like Feudal Europe.
The Art: Um, the Thing uses a Tower to Baseball Bash an Alien Ship. That's Crazy Cool.
Whatta I Think: Crazy, baby. Just beautiful crazy. It's interesting that the individual issues of the FF are getting pretty damn good at this point, but having Dr. Doom in an issue cranks the volume up a couple of notches. Coolness.
Journey into Mystery Featuring the Mighty Thor PLUS Tales of Asgard #97
Story/Art: Jack Kirby. Inks: Don Heck. Plot/Dialogue: Stan Lee
Tales of Asgard: Story/Art: Jack Kirby. Inks: George Bell. Plot/Dialogue: Stan Lee.
Main Story: There's a plane crashing, but never fear, Thor is here to save the day. Back in his civilian identity as Dr. Blake, Don wants to admit his feelings to Jane Foster, but he can't without getting approval from Odin first. Odin says Hell No. No Mortals! Dr. Blake has to keep his feelings to himself, so Jane gets pissed off and leaves Dr. Blake to go off with sophisticated (but extremely creepy) Dr. Andrews. Meanwhile, the Lava Man (his name should be pretty self explanatory) is heading for New York, burning up everything to prove his superiority as an underground dweller guy. The Army tries to fight the Lava Man, but they're super useless. Thor finally shows up, and there's a bit of a fight before Thor finally uses a tornado (man, Thor really, really liked Tornadoes back then) to stuff the Lava Man into a volcano, sending him back home. Even though Thor has saved the day, he returns to his office as Dr. Blake to see Jane Foster leaving arm in arm with Creepy Dr. Andrews. D'Oh!
Tales of Asgard Story: We get an introduction to ancient Viking culture and their mythology. We see the rise of the dreaded frost giants, and the first of the Aesir. We get introduced to Ymir the Ultimate Frost Giant, the Well of Life where all waters meet, and Yggdrasil the World Tree. Also, we get the lineage of Odin (it goes Buri fathered Borr, who fathered Odin). Oh, and Surtur pops up, waiting patiently to burn everything up.
Notes: First up, there's the Lava Man. Not the most interesting villain of all time, but he does pop up later in my favorite issue of Kirby's Avengers, so he's not a total throw away villain. Also, this is the first time where we start to see the dysfunctional elements of the Thor/Odin relationship. Other than that, the Tales of Asgard segment is chock full of killer stuff, like Frost Giants, Yggdrasil the World Tree, and a brief appearance by Surtur, who will go on to become the centerpiece of Walt Simonson's epic Thor run.
The Art: Welp, we get another Kirby issue, so that alone makes the Art on this one much better than previous issues. The art on the main story is nice, but the art on Tales of Asgard is absolutely gorgeous! So many wild and crazy mythological concepts drawn with all of Kirby's skill and panache. Lovely.
Whatta I Think: The main story is just kind of more of the same, but the Tales of Asgard back up story is absolutely wonderful. This is our first hint that this comic is going somewhere special. Finally. Oh! And you might notice that there's no one else doing the Script anymore. Goodbye, losers!
JIM feat. Thor and ToA #98
Art: Don Heck. Story: Stan Lee
ToA- Story/Art: Jack Kirby. Inks: Don Heck. Plot/Script: Stan Lee
Main Story: Thor throws a fit cause he can't marry Jane Foster. Reverting to Dr. Don Blake, Donny whines a lot. I mean a lot. He decides to get the hell out of Dodge and goes to India to hang out with his old teacher. When he gets there, he discovers his old mentor has been poisoned by a cobra, courtesy of his treacherous assistant. Turns out, Blake's old mentor was experimenting with Radioactive Cobras for no good reason. The Radioactive Cobra also bit the assistant, but because the assistant had taken the snake bite antidote ahead of time, the Cobra bite turned the evil assistant into Cobra-man...er, supervillain called the Cobra. Wow, that made no sense. Anyway, the Cobra goes to New York, with Thor following suit. The Cobra invades a place looking for Snake Venom so he can make an Army of Evil Cobra-men (wait? What?), but Thor shows up to counter him. Thor fights the Cobra to a stand still. The Cobra escapes, and ends up going to Creepy Dr. Andrews office where he (all together now) Captures Jane Foster (jeez, she gets captured more often than Sue Storm). Needless to say, Creepy Dr. Andrews is too scared to do anything about it except cower in fear. Thor finally arrives to save the day, but Cobra escapes. In the end, Jane Foster leaves Creepy Dr. Andrews and returns to work for Don Blake.
ToA Story: It's Odin and his Chariot pulled by Winged Horses vs. the Frost Giants! Do I even need to say anything else? Odin stomps their asses and traps Ymir the Lord of the Frost Giants in a Circle of Flame forever and ever. Awesome.
Notes: In the main story, we've got the debut of the Cobra, probably the most notable Thor villain that was not created by Jack Kirby. Nope, I assume we gotta give the credit for this one to Don Heck (more on him in a bit...). Of course, I don't think I've ever really seen the Cobra in anything, but Kirby will use the character later on in the series. Other than that, the Cobra's got some neat gimmicks, like Poison Darts, Poison Gas, a Cobra Cord, and he can slither up walls. Other than that, this marks the end of the ever creepy Dr. Andrews. Never liked that guy.
As for Tales of Asgard, we get the story of how Odin conquered the Frost Giants (which certainly wasn't a major plot point in a certain major motion picture). Odin throws Meteor Bolts, the Giants blast frozen North Wind Breath, and Odin sends a bunch of Frost Giants to their doom by opening a crevice beneath them.
The Art: Don Heck was one of Jack Kirby's more noteworthy Pinch Hitters. Don Heck ran with Iron Man for most of the early issues, based mostly on Kirby's initial designs of the character. Heck also worked on the 60s version of Captain America for a little while (I think. I should probably look that up). Don Heck also did a brief run on Thor before Kirby took over the strip full time. His art is okay.
Meanwhile, the Kirby drawn Tales of Asgard is awesome. It's Odin vs. Frost Giants!
Whatta I Think: Tales of Asgard continues to be the highlight of this comic. Part of it is the Jack Kirby artwork, and part of it is the fact that the Mythic scope of these tales is far more suitable to Thor than the various Sci-fi/Superhero tales that we've been bumbling through. As for the main story... it's not bad...compared to a lot of the previous issues. The Cobra is one of the better villains we've had so far (better than the garbage we've got so far (not counting Loki, obviously)). Still, the drama with Dr. Blake and Jane Foster is annoying. There's nothing I hate more than when a superhero whines and complains about how he doesn't wanna be a superhero. Unfortunately, that happens a lot in these old Marvel comics (especially the Ditko/Lee Spiderman...oy, that goes on forever).
More Doom! More Tales of Asgard! Woo! Now we're starting to roll!
Story/Art: Jack Kirby, Inks: Dick Ayers, Plot/Script: Stan Lee
Story: Our heroes are out and about on the town doing their thing (and the Thing himself is being tormented by the dreaded Yancy Street Gang) when Reed summons them to HQ because there's reports of all of the crime bosses from across the US congregating in the US under the auspices of a new leader. That leader is the Mad Thinker, a super genius dude who plots meticulous, heavily calculated plans that never fail. Realizing that the only threat to his plans to conquer New York is the Fantastic Four, the Thinker lures all of the members off on various side gigs (Reed gets a fancy science job, Sue becomes an actress, Ben a wrestler, and Johny joins the circus), causing them to split up and abandon their HQ. The Thinker and his gang conquer the FF's HQ. Meanwhile, our Heroes get bored with their new gigs and reunite, only to find that their home is now covered in crystal. The Mad Thinker challenges the FF. The Four storm the building, only to run into trouble with all of Reed's various gadgets, now being used by the Thinker's gang. There's trouble with Vibro-Guns, Trippy Gas, and ultimately, the Mad Thinker's Awesome Android, built from Reed's own design. The Android can adapt to his situation at will, but Reed knows where the shut off switch is, so good night Android. The FF confront the Thinker, who tries to hold them at bay with more of Reed's weapons (seriously Reed, how many Deadly Weapons do you just leave lying around???). Unfortunately for the Thinker, the FF's mailman shows up, delivering a package for Reed, and presses the doorbell, which has been rigged up to a device that deactivates all of the equipment in Reed's lab. The Thinker is rendered defenceless and is sent to jail. Turns out, the Thinker just couldn't think of everything.
Notes: The only real note I have on this one is the Drawing of the Thing in a Tutu that declares "The Thing is a Sissy", courtesy of those pesky Yancy Streeters. We never actually see the Yancy Street Gang, but they do show up to taunt the Thing and throw stuff at him. Other than that, the illustrations of the Thinker's various crimes are kinda neat (at one point, an organ grinder's monkey proves to be the key to the Thinker's victory).
The Art: There's some neat stuff here. The scene with the Gas that alters people's perception is pretty cool, and Reed solves the problem by turning into a Giant Fan, which is also cool. Other than that, the Awesome Android, with his Biscuit Shaped Head, walks the very thin line between being completely Awesome and completely Stupid at the same time. Which is what is cool about a lot of Kirby's work in the first place.
Whatta I Think: Honestly, this issue's kinda boring. There's a lot of fumbling around and build up, but the fast moving sequence at the end helps to revive this otherwise so-so issue. Don't worry kiddies, we get Dr. Doom next issue.
Fantastic Four #16
Story/Art: Jack Kirby. Inks: Dick Ayers. Plot/Script: Stan Lee
Story: The FF have been randomly shrinking every so often. Needless to say, randomly shrinking can be a dangerous thing, so our heroes call up Ant-Man to help them out. Ant-Man swings by the FF's HQ to give them a couple of vials of Shrinking and Growing Fluid, then bolts. Our heroes go about their business, but begin hearing a tiny voice warning of Dr. Doom. Reed decides enough is enough, and has everyone douse themselves in Shrinking Fluid. Our heroes shrink down into a tiny world that looks kinda like Medieval Europe. Obviously, Doom is the ruler, having conquered the world with a single shrink ray (man, to already be microscopic, then to get shrunk some more. Sucky). The FF get shrunk, but still put up a pretty good fight until Sue gets captured (jeez, Sue, stop getting captured already), forcing our heroes to surrender. The FF get dumped into the dungeon with the former King and Princess. The Princess, of course, was who sent out the messages to our heroes. The Four discover that Doom has summoned the lizard-like alien Tok from a nearby planet, and plans to sell the FF into slavery. Not cool. Meanwhile, in Our Larger World, Ant Man stops by FF HQ, and seeing the shattered vial of Shrink Fluid, decides to follow the Four into the Microworld. Sadly, Ant-Man is quickly captured. The FF manage to escape the dungeon and revert to ... Full Size (kinda?). A fight breaks out, and the FF mop up the floor with Doom's soldiers. When the Tok Ship shows up, the Thing grabs a massive tower, and uses it as a baseball bat to knock the Tok Ship back into space. Seeing he's outgunned, Dr. Doom flees, Growing back to our Normal Sized World. Meanwhile, the FF defeat Doom's men and reinstall the King and Princess as rulers. Time to get back to Normal Size! Huzzah!
Notes: Worlds within worlds! Entire Microscopic Universes so small we can't even perceive them! Kirby Crazy all the way! Other than that, Ant-Man is actually kinda pointless in this comic. I mean, he really serves no purpose besides being there to hype his own book. Also, we get a one panel cameo by the Wasp. Also, I think it's funny that the Microworld looks like Feudal Europe.
The Art: Um, the Thing uses a Tower to Baseball Bash an Alien Ship. That's Crazy Cool.
Whatta I Think: Crazy, baby. Just beautiful crazy. It's interesting that the individual issues of the FF are getting pretty damn good at this point, but having Dr. Doom in an issue cranks the volume up a couple of notches. Coolness.
Journey into Mystery Featuring the Mighty Thor PLUS Tales of Asgard #97
Story/Art: Jack Kirby. Inks: Don Heck. Plot/Dialogue: Stan Lee
Tales of Asgard: Story/Art: Jack Kirby. Inks: George Bell. Plot/Dialogue: Stan Lee.
Main Story: There's a plane crashing, but never fear, Thor is here to save the day. Back in his civilian identity as Dr. Blake, Don wants to admit his feelings to Jane Foster, but he can't without getting approval from Odin first. Odin says Hell No. No Mortals! Dr. Blake has to keep his feelings to himself, so Jane gets pissed off and leaves Dr. Blake to go off with sophisticated (but extremely creepy) Dr. Andrews. Meanwhile, the Lava Man (his name should be pretty self explanatory) is heading for New York, burning up everything to prove his superiority as an underground dweller guy. The Army tries to fight the Lava Man, but they're super useless. Thor finally shows up, and there's a bit of a fight before Thor finally uses a tornado (man, Thor really, really liked Tornadoes back then) to stuff the Lava Man into a volcano, sending him back home. Even though Thor has saved the day, he returns to his office as Dr. Blake to see Jane Foster leaving arm in arm with Creepy Dr. Andrews. D'Oh!
Tales of Asgard Story: We get an introduction to ancient Viking culture and their mythology. We see the rise of the dreaded frost giants, and the first of the Aesir. We get introduced to Ymir the Ultimate Frost Giant, the Well of Life where all waters meet, and Yggdrasil the World Tree. Also, we get the lineage of Odin (it goes Buri fathered Borr, who fathered Odin). Oh, and Surtur pops up, waiting patiently to burn everything up.
Notes: First up, there's the Lava Man. Not the most interesting villain of all time, but he does pop up later in my favorite issue of Kirby's Avengers, so he's not a total throw away villain. Also, this is the first time where we start to see the dysfunctional elements of the Thor/Odin relationship. Other than that, the Tales of Asgard segment is chock full of killer stuff, like Frost Giants, Yggdrasil the World Tree, and a brief appearance by Surtur, who will go on to become the centerpiece of Walt Simonson's epic Thor run.
The Art: Welp, we get another Kirby issue, so that alone makes the Art on this one much better than previous issues. The art on the main story is nice, but the art on Tales of Asgard is absolutely gorgeous! So many wild and crazy mythological concepts drawn with all of Kirby's skill and panache. Lovely.
Whatta I Think: The main story is just kind of more of the same, but the Tales of Asgard back up story is absolutely wonderful. This is our first hint that this comic is going somewhere special. Finally. Oh! And you might notice that there's no one else doing the Script anymore. Goodbye, losers!
JIM feat. Thor and ToA #98
Art: Don Heck. Story: Stan Lee
ToA- Story/Art: Jack Kirby. Inks: Don Heck. Plot/Script: Stan Lee
Main Story: Thor throws a fit cause he can't marry Jane Foster. Reverting to Dr. Don Blake, Donny whines a lot. I mean a lot. He decides to get the hell out of Dodge and goes to India to hang out with his old teacher. When he gets there, he discovers his old mentor has been poisoned by a cobra, courtesy of his treacherous assistant. Turns out, Blake's old mentor was experimenting with Radioactive Cobras for no good reason. The Radioactive Cobra also bit the assistant, but because the assistant had taken the snake bite antidote ahead of time, the Cobra bite turned the evil assistant into Cobra-man...er, supervillain called the Cobra. Wow, that made no sense. Anyway, the Cobra goes to New York, with Thor following suit. The Cobra invades a place looking for Snake Venom so he can make an Army of Evil Cobra-men (wait? What?), but Thor shows up to counter him. Thor fights the Cobra to a stand still. The Cobra escapes, and ends up going to Creepy Dr. Andrews office where he (all together now) Captures Jane Foster (jeez, she gets captured more often than Sue Storm). Needless to say, Creepy Dr. Andrews is too scared to do anything about it except cower in fear. Thor finally arrives to save the day, but Cobra escapes. In the end, Jane Foster leaves Creepy Dr. Andrews and returns to work for Don Blake.
ToA Story: It's Odin and his Chariot pulled by Winged Horses vs. the Frost Giants! Do I even need to say anything else? Odin stomps their asses and traps Ymir the Lord of the Frost Giants in a Circle of Flame forever and ever. Awesome.
Notes: In the main story, we've got the debut of the Cobra, probably the most notable Thor villain that was not created by Jack Kirby. Nope, I assume we gotta give the credit for this one to Don Heck (more on him in a bit...). Of course, I don't think I've ever really seen the Cobra in anything, but Kirby will use the character later on in the series. Other than that, the Cobra's got some neat gimmicks, like Poison Darts, Poison Gas, a Cobra Cord, and he can slither up walls. Other than that, this marks the end of the ever creepy Dr. Andrews. Never liked that guy.
As for Tales of Asgard, we get the story of how Odin conquered the Frost Giants (which certainly wasn't a major plot point in a certain major motion picture). Odin throws Meteor Bolts, the Giants blast frozen North Wind Breath, and Odin sends a bunch of Frost Giants to their doom by opening a crevice beneath them.
The Art: Don Heck was one of Jack Kirby's more noteworthy Pinch Hitters. Don Heck ran with Iron Man for most of the early issues, based mostly on Kirby's initial designs of the character. Heck also worked on the 60s version of Captain America for a little while (I think. I should probably look that up). Don Heck also did a brief run on Thor before Kirby took over the strip full time. His art is okay.
Meanwhile, the Kirby drawn Tales of Asgard is awesome. It's Odin vs. Frost Giants!
Whatta I Think: Tales of Asgard continues to be the highlight of this comic. Part of it is the Jack Kirby artwork, and part of it is the fact that the Mythic scope of these tales is far more suitable to Thor than the various Sci-fi/Superhero tales that we've been bumbling through. As for the main story... it's not bad...compared to a lot of the previous issues. The Cobra is one of the better villains we've had so far (better than the garbage we've got so far (not counting Loki, obviously)). Still, the drama with Dr. Blake and Jane Foster is annoying. There's nothing I hate more than when a superhero whines and complains about how he doesn't wanna be a superhero. Unfortunately, that happens a lot in these old Marvel comics (especially the Ditko/Lee Spiderman...oy, that goes on forever).
More Doom! More Tales of Asgard! Woo! Now we're starting to roll!
Thursday, December 13, 2012
Four & Thor 7
Let's Roll...
Fantastic Four #13
Story/Art: Jack Kirby. Inks: Steve Ditko (!!!). Plot/Dialogue: Stan Lee.
Story: There's a fire in the Lab, because Reed's making a new kind of rocket fuel from pieces of meteorite. Turns out Reed wants to get to the moon before those darn Ruskies. Speaking of which, a Russian scientist and his trio of trained apes are also getting ready to roll for the moon. Everyone takes off for the moon at the same time. Although the FF's new spaceship is shielded from Cosmic Rays (fool me once...) the Russian ship intentionally isn't. Thus, the Red Ghost and his Super Apes are born. The Red Ghost can phase, the Gorilla has super strength, the Baboon's a shapeshifter, and the orangutan has magnetic powers. Meanwhile, Johny's got a suit that lets him use his powers in space (fool me once...), so he spies on the Russian ship, but gets repelled by the orangutan. Everyone lands on the moon, the Blue Are to be exact. Turns out that not only is there an old abandoned civilization up there, but there's also an atmosphere. Handy. Also, there's a weird mystery house. While everyone else goes to investigate, the Thing gets left behind and runs afoul of the Red Ghost and his Apes. There's a bit of a fight, and then the Watcher shows up. The Watcher breaks up the fight, declares that he's from an ancient race that just observes stuff and never interferes, but then declares that the human race is getting all savage. Before they can rip up his home on the moon, the Watcher interferes and teleports everyone to some other area of the Moon so they can fight among themselves for dominance of the moon or something. The Red Ghost and his apes take an early advantage and kidnap Sue (hmmm, that's a bit of a running gag). The Red Ghost locks her up, but Sue uses food to trick the hungry apes into freeing her. Sue then saves the others from the Red Ghost's latest trap (disintegrator ray, baby!). Without his Apes to back him up, the Red Ghost flees to the Watcher's House. The Watcher gets pissed (maybe the Red Ghost didn't wipe his feet), and then displays a wide variety of ways that he could punish the Ghost (lost in time was my personal favorite), and then decides just to throw him out. Reed uses a Paralysis Ray (gotta love it) to stop the Ghost. The Watcher declares he's leaving the moon since the humans are too close, but he'll continue to peep, er Watch, us from the other side of the Galaxy. Meanwhile, the Apes free the Red Ghost, only to turn on him and chase him off.
Notes: Lots of neat stuff in here. Obviously, this marks the debut of the Red Ghost and his Super Apes. Maybe not the most pivotal of FF Villains, but they're still a part of FF History. More notable, of course, is the debut of the Watcher, one of the noteworthy of all of Marvel's Cosmic Beings. The Watcher has been featured in numerous comics throughout the years, and has played a role in lots of major comics stories, including many of the Kirby/Lee FF stories that are to come. Other than that, we get the Blue Area of the Moon (a pivotal Marvel location that will be returned to repeatedly throughout the years). Other Fun Stuff: Reed's got a Fireproof Stretch Suit. Also, Disintegrator Rays and Paralyzer Rays. Fun!
The Art: Ahem. Jack Kirby Pencils. Steve Ditko Inks. Oh yeah. Although I still prefer Joe Sinnott and Mike Royer Inking Kirby, it is always something of a treat to see Ditko inking Kirby. The art becomes this weird amalgam of the two, and the scenes on the Moon are hauntingly beautiful and strangely alien, and Ditko's inks are the major reason it looks this way. In other words, this is a lovely, offbeat issue, art wise.
Whatta I Think: Great Issue. The debut of a pivotal character, the debut of a formidable group of villains (and they be Monkeys no less! Oo! Oo! Ah! Ah!), and the two trailblazers of Marvel working together. Just wonderful.
Fantastic Four #14
Story/Art: Jack Kirby. Inks: Dick Ayers (sigh). Plot/Dialogue: Stan Lee
Story: The FF are back from the Moon, and that makes them Super Celebrities. Everyone freaks out, and it be like Beetlemania. Johny uses a Hot Tornado (Kirby seemed to like Tornados) to get everyone back home. Sue is still pining over Namor. Meanwhile, turns out the Puppet Master isn't dead, he's just getting out of a Sanitarium. The Puppet Master decides to use Namor as his pawn, so he makes a Puppet Namor, and we are off to the races. Under the Puppet Master's spell, Namor uses a Mento Fish (you heard me) to psychically contact Sue into meeting him. Sue obliges, and Namor captures her using a Hypno Fish. The FF take off after her, and Ben brings along Alicia for absolutely no good reason. The FF go Sub diving, and run into all sorts of undersea troubles. Johny burns his flame white hot which keeps the water and pressure off of him (hey, Kirby and Lee weren't scientists, y'know?) and clears out the dangers. Regardless, the FF's Sub gets Swallowed by a Giant Clam (there's a joke there). The FF and Alicia are taken to Namor's HQ, where they find Sue being guarded by a giant squid. Johny attacks Namor, but Namor humbles him by using a Fish that devours Flame. Yep. The Thing steps in, and has to deal with Razor sharp coral and a fast growing fungus. Reed steps in, and turns himself into a living net that binds Namor. Meanwhile, the Thing tosses the Squid out of the tank and frees Sue. Namor attempts to kill our heroes with a Poison Gas Plant, but Reed saves the day with his Plastic Gas Masks. Meanwhile, the Puppet Master has been monitoring everything from a Sub of his own. Unfortunately, the Giant Squid catches the poor fool and crushes his sub, killing him. Again. Namor is freed from the Puppet Master's control, and everyone calls it a day.
Notes: I think it's hilarious that the Puppet Master dies a horrible, embarrassing death at the end of every issue he's in. It's a little hint of Kirby's offbeat sense of humor. The other funny thing about this issue is the menagerie of crazy fish that Namor uses in this issue. Further proof that Namor is a billion time superior to Aquaman.
The Art: Well, we're back to Dick Ayers and his blorpy inking. Eh. Still, lots of cool stuff here. The weird fish, giant squid, Reed turning himself into a Living Fish Net. Plus, we get a pretty decent fight scene. Not bad.
Whatta I Think: You've got two choices with this issue, you either roll with it or you think all of the super fish are stupid and this issue is a waste of time. Me? I think this issue is a hoot. I want more of Namor and his weird Mutant Fish.
Journey Into Mystery featuring Thor #95
Art: Joe Sinnott. Script: R. Berns. Plot: Stan Lee
Story: There's a drought in Asgard. Odin calls up Thor, who makes it Rain. Thor returns to Earth where Dr. Zaxton is demonstrating an Android created by Dr. Blake (wait? What?). The Android is super strong and immune to Thor's hammer (really?). Zaxton accidentally makes the Android self destruct. Thor saves the day by chucking the Android into orbit. Later, after Thor has reverted to Dr. Blake, Zaxton shows up and declares that he has a Duplicating Machine that will Duplicate Anything it Shoots (groan) and he needs Dr. Blake to help him finish it so it can duplicate people (groan) and he's kidnapped Jane Foster (groan) to ensure Blake will help him. Zaxton finishes his machine, finds out that Blake is Thor (groan) duplicates Thor (groan), makes a duplicate of Mjlonr (groan), and what follows is the dumbest fight scene in history as Thor fights Thor (and another Thor pops up later). In the end, Zaxton duplicates himself, only to fall to his doom, leaving his Good Copy behind. GROAN.
Notes: I hate this comic.
Art: Who cares?
Whatta I Think: So bad. So, so bad.
JIM #96
Same creators as before.
Story: Hey, they've found the Crypt of Merlin, and Merlin himself is inside. Turns out, Merlin, who's totally evil and wears a stupid wizard costume, has been sleeping for a long time. Oh, and Merlin's a mutant. Merlin tries to divert a rocket to prove his power, but Thor stops it. Merlin tries to make JFK his new King Arthur, but he doesn't realize JFK is the Prez cause he's too young (groan). Thor finally catches up to Merlin. Merlin levitates the Washington Monument (there's a joke there). Thor stops that. Merlin drops the Pentagon on Thor, but Thor digs his way out. Merlin makes the Lincoln Memorial come to life and attack Thor, but Thor knocks Honest Abe back into his chair. Finally, Thor defeats Merlin by turning into Dr. Blake and claiming that he can turn into hundreds of forms and that he has lots of other powers (even though he doesn't demonstrate any of them). Merlin becomes terrified of Lame Ass Donald Blake and flees back to his coffin, returning to his Mystic Slumber.
Notes: Well... this may be the first time that the Lincoln Memorial is brought to life. Considering how many times I've seen that gag, this book gets credit for that.
The Art: Better than last issue.
Whatta I Think: Eh. Better than last issue. Still terrible.
Two Interesting Issues of the Fantastic Four, and two of the worst comics I've ever read. Eh. It's a wash.
Fantastic Four #13
Story/Art: Jack Kirby. Inks: Steve Ditko (!!!). Plot/Dialogue: Stan Lee.
Story: There's a fire in the Lab, because Reed's making a new kind of rocket fuel from pieces of meteorite. Turns out Reed wants to get to the moon before those darn Ruskies. Speaking of which, a Russian scientist and his trio of trained apes are also getting ready to roll for the moon. Everyone takes off for the moon at the same time. Although the FF's new spaceship is shielded from Cosmic Rays (fool me once...) the Russian ship intentionally isn't. Thus, the Red Ghost and his Super Apes are born. The Red Ghost can phase, the Gorilla has super strength, the Baboon's a shapeshifter, and the orangutan has magnetic powers. Meanwhile, Johny's got a suit that lets him use his powers in space (fool me once...), so he spies on the Russian ship, but gets repelled by the orangutan. Everyone lands on the moon, the Blue Are to be exact. Turns out that not only is there an old abandoned civilization up there, but there's also an atmosphere. Handy. Also, there's a weird mystery house. While everyone else goes to investigate, the Thing gets left behind and runs afoul of the Red Ghost and his Apes. There's a bit of a fight, and then the Watcher shows up. The Watcher breaks up the fight, declares that he's from an ancient race that just observes stuff and never interferes, but then declares that the human race is getting all savage. Before they can rip up his home on the moon, the Watcher interferes and teleports everyone to some other area of the Moon so they can fight among themselves for dominance of the moon or something. The Red Ghost and his apes take an early advantage and kidnap Sue (hmmm, that's a bit of a running gag). The Red Ghost locks her up, but Sue uses food to trick the hungry apes into freeing her. Sue then saves the others from the Red Ghost's latest trap (disintegrator ray, baby!). Without his Apes to back him up, the Red Ghost flees to the Watcher's House. The Watcher gets pissed (maybe the Red Ghost didn't wipe his feet), and then displays a wide variety of ways that he could punish the Ghost (lost in time was my personal favorite), and then decides just to throw him out. Reed uses a Paralysis Ray (gotta love it) to stop the Ghost. The Watcher declares he's leaving the moon since the humans are too close, but he'll continue to peep, er Watch, us from the other side of the Galaxy. Meanwhile, the Apes free the Red Ghost, only to turn on him and chase him off.
Notes: Lots of neat stuff in here. Obviously, this marks the debut of the Red Ghost and his Super Apes. Maybe not the most pivotal of FF Villains, but they're still a part of FF History. More notable, of course, is the debut of the Watcher, one of the noteworthy of all of Marvel's Cosmic Beings. The Watcher has been featured in numerous comics throughout the years, and has played a role in lots of major comics stories, including many of the Kirby/Lee FF stories that are to come. Other than that, we get the Blue Area of the Moon (a pivotal Marvel location that will be returned to repeatedly throughout the years). Other Fun Stuff: Reed's got a Fireproof Stretch Suit. Also, Disintegrator Rays and Paralyzer Rays. Fun!
The Art: Ahem. Jack Kirby Pencils. Steve Ditko Inks. Oh yeah. Although I still prefer Joe Sinnott and Mike Royer Inking Kirby, it is always something of a treat to see Ditko inking Kirby. The art becomes this weird amalgam of the two, and the scenes on the Moon are hauntingly beautiful and strangely alien, and Ditko's inks are the major reason it looks this way. In other words, this is a lovely, offbeat issue, art wise.
Whatta I Think: Great Issue. The debut of a pivotal character, the debut of a formidable group of villains (and they be Monkeys no less! Oo! Oo! Ah! Ah!), and the two trailblazers of Marvel working together. Just wonderful.
Fantastic Four #14
Story/Art: Jack Kirby. Inks: Dick Ayers (sigh). Plot/Dialogue: Stan Lee
Story: The FF are back from the Moon, and that makes them Super Celebrities. Everyone freaks out, and it be like Beetlemania. Johny uses a Hot Tornado (Kirby seemed to like Tornados) to get everyone back home. Sue is still pining over Namor. Meanwhile, turns out the Puppet Master isn't dead, he's just getting out of a Sanitarium. The Puppet Master decides to use Namor as his pawn, so he makes a Puppet Namor, and we are off to the races. Under the Puppet Master's spell, Namor uses a Mento Fish (you heard me) to psychically contact Sue into meeting him. Sue obliges, and Namor captures her using a Hypno Fish. The FF take off after her, and Ben brings along Alicia for absolutely no good reason. The FF go Sub diving, and run into all sorts of undersea troubles. Johny burns his flame white hot which keeps the water and pressure off of him (hey, Kirby and Lee weren't scientists, y'know?) and clears out the dangers. Regardless, the FF's Sub gets Swallowed by a Giant Clam (there's a joke there). The FF and Alicia are taken to Namor's HQ, where they find Sue being guarded by a giant squid. Johny attacks Namor, but Namor humbles him by using a Fish that devours Flame. Yep. The Thing steps in, and has to deal with Razor sharp coral and a fast growing fungus. Reed steps in, and turns himself into a living net that binds Namor. Meanwhile, the Thing tosses the Squid out of the tank and frees Sue. Namor attempts to kill our heroes with a Poison Gas Plant, but Reed saves the day with his Plastic Gas Masks. Meanwhile, the Puppet Master has been monitoring everything from a Sub of his own. Unfortunately, the Giant Squid catches the poor fool and crushes his sub, killing him. Again. Namor is freed from the Puppet Master's control, and everyone calls it a day.
Notes: I think it's hilarious that the Puppet Master dies a horrible, embarrassing death at the end of every issue he's in. It's a little hint of Kirby's offbeat sense of humor. The other funny thing about this issue is the menagerie of crazy fish that Namor uses in this issue. Further proof that Namor is a billion time superior to Aquaman.
The Art: Well, we're back to Dick Ayers and his blorpy inking. Eh. Still, lots of cool stuff here. The weird fish, giant squid, Reed turning himself into a Living Fish Net. Plus, we get a pretty decent fight scene. Not bad.
Whatta I Think: You've got two choices with this issue, you either roll with it or you think all of the super fish are stupid and this issue is a waste of time. Me? I think this issue is a hoot. I want more of Namor and his weird Mutant Fish.
Journey Into Mystery featuring Thor #95
Art: Joe Sinnott. Script: R. Berns. Plot: Stan Lee
Story: There's a drought in Asgard. Odin calls up Thor, who makes it Rain. Thor returns to Earth where Dr. Zaxton is demonstrating an Android created by Dr. Blake (wait? What?). The Android is super strong and immune to Thor's hammer (really?). Zaxton accidentally makes the Android self destruct. Thor saves the day by chucking the Android into orbit. Later, after Thor has reverted to Dr. Blake, Zaxton shows up and declares that he has a Duplicating Machine that will Duplicate Anything it Shoots (groan) and he needs Dr. Blake to help him finish it so it can duplicate people (groan) and he's kidnapped Jane Foster (groan) to ensure Blake will help him. Zaxton finishes his machine, finds out that Blake is Thor (groan) duplicates Thor (groan), makes a duplicate of Mjlonr (groan), and what follows is the dumbest fight scene in history as Thor fights Thor (and another Thor pops up later). In the end, Zaxton duplicates himself, only to fall to his doom, leaving his Good Copy behind. GROAN.
Notes: I hate this comic.
Art: Who cares?
Whatta I Think: So bad. So, so bad.
JIM #96
Same creators as before.
Story: Hey, they've found the Crypt of Merlin, and Merlin himself is inside. Turns out, Merlin, who's totally evil and wears a stupid wizard costume, has been sleeping for a long time. Oh, and Merlin's a mutant. Merlin tries to divert a rocket to prove his power, but Thor stops it. Merlin tries to make JFK his new King Arthur, but he doesn't realize JFK is the Prez cause he's too young (groan). Thor finally catches up to Merlin. Merlin levitates the Washington Monument (there's a joke there). Thor stops that. Merlin drops the Pentagon on Thor, but Thor digs his way out. Merlin makes the Lincoln Memorial come to life and attack Thor, but Thor knocks Honest Abe back into his chair. Finally, Thor defeats Merlin by turning into Dr. Blake and claiming that he can turn into hundreds of forms and that he has lots of other powers (even though he doesn't demonstrate any of them). Merlin becomes terrified of Lame Ass Donald Blake and flees back to his coffin, returning to his Mystic Slumber.
Notes: Well... this may be the first time that the Lincoln Memorial is brought to life. Considering how many times I've seen that gag, this book gets credit for that.
The Art: Better than last issue.
Whatta I Think: Eh. Better than last issue. Still terrible.
Two Interesting Issues of the Fantastic Four, and two of the worst comics I've ever read. Eh. It's a wash.
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
Four & Thor 6
Hey Ho! Let's Go!
Fantastic Four #11
by Jack Kirby on Story/Pencils, Dick Ayers on Inks, and Stan Lee on Plot/Dialogue
Story: Actually, we get two short stories in this one. In the lead story, we get a day in the life of the FF, as they hang out with street kids dressed as the FF and Read Fan Mail (including another Thing directed gag gift from the Yancy Street Gang). We get the story of how Reed and Ben met in college and fought in WWII. We also get a bunch of letters from people saying that Sue is useless, which pisses off Reed. Also, it's Sue's Birthday. In the second story, the Impossible Man who can not only shapeshift, but actually evolve his body to suit the needs of the environment, shows up on earth for a vacation, and causes a bunch of trouble. Reed figures out the best way to get rid of Impy is for everyone on the whole planet to ignore him, so that's what everyone does. Impy gets frustrated and leaves. The End.
Notes: Well, this does mark the debut of the moderately noteworthy Impossible Man. That's something, I suppose. Other than that, we get more of "Hey, Reed is finally starting to admit his feelings for Sue, but Sue's still got a girl boner for Namor".
The Art: It's always fun to watch the King draw Shapeshifters.
Whatta I Think: Kind of a filler issue, really.
Fantastic Four #12
by the same as above
Story: Ben and Alicia are out on the town, when they see soldiers marching through the streets. The soldiers mistake the Thing for the Hulk (I could see that during this time period) and attack him. Eventually the confusion is cleared up. Thunderbolt Ross shows up at FF HQ and requests that they deal with the Hulk, accusing the Hulk of wrecking a bunch of secret Military Experiments. The FF, in their newly redesigned Fantasticar fly off to the desert, where they meet up with Bruce Banner and Rick Jones. Unbeknownst to our heroes, the actual sabateur is revealed to be some skinny Commie guy who kidnaps Rick. Thing gets used as a crash test dummy for a rocket sled, which wrecks because of the sabateur (called the Wrecker by Banner). Discovering Rick has been captured, Bruce turns into the Hulk and immediately gets into a Fight with the Fantastic Four. There are a few pages of Magic Fightyness before the Hulk is conked out by an underground laser. Turns out the Commie Spy has his own Robot, which the Thing smashes. Ben and Sue capture the wrecker and free Rick. The Hulk turns back to Banner, and the FF leave.
Notes: Ahhhh. What a wonderful comic. I read some criticism about this issue, as some people claim the actual fight between the FF and the Hulk is too short and not all that cool. Pish-tosh, I say! If you're reading the books in sequence, this issue is the most wonderful issue of the FF up till this point, and just a wonder of Magic Fightyness. Besides all of that, this is the first major character cross over in an issue of the Fantastic Four, and it marks the debut of the more recognizable version of the Fantasticar. The only oddity I've found in this issue is that Thunderbolt Ross looks fatter than usual. I may need to double check my Hulk collected edition. Oh! And Ben likes down and dirty Jazz. Who knew?
The Art: First, this issue has one of the most ICONIC covers in all of Comic Book History. The scene of the Hulk waiting around the corner to Smash the FF is just a thing of beauty. Other than that, the interiors are pretty rock on as well, even with Dick Ayers's so-so inks. The first look at the Fantasticar and the wild melee in the desert (which includes the Hulk picking up an entire building! Yes!) are just beautifully rendered.
Whatta I Think: Best Issue of the Fantastic Four up to this point, and one of the Best Issues of the Comic in General. Worth picking up the Essential Volume for this story alone.
Journey Into Mystery featuring Thor #93
Pencils/Story: Jack Kirby, Inks: Dick Ayers, Script: R. Berns, Plot: Stan Lee
Story: Over in India, they're having a problem with the Red Chinese. Dr. Donald Blake is inexplicably out in the trenches providing support for the Medical staff, and, not surprisingly, Thor shows up to wreck up a buncha Chinese tanks and missiles. The Chinese respond by creating the Radioactive Man, a Chinese Scientist who makes his entire body into a nuclear reactor. Woo. The Radioactive Man goes to New York and starts wrecking up the joint. Thor, already back in America, takes the fight to R-Man, but the stinking Commie's Radioactive Shield repels Thor's Hammer (really?). The Radioactive Man uses light pulses to hypnotize Thor (again? really?), forcing Thor to throw away his hammer. While R-Man chases after the hammer, Thor reverts to Blake (thus ending the hypnotism...again). After using an X-Ray Device back at his office, Blake finds the Hammer at the bottom of the Hudson River (waitwaitwait...WHAT?). Dr. Blake, despite being a lame weakling, shows good old American Courage, dives into the river, and retrieves the Hammer, turning back into Thor. Thor whips up a Tornado and sends the Radioactive Man flying all the way to China where he promptly explodes on impact. Ouch.
Notes: We get a change of pace this issue. Instead of the dastardly Russians, we get the dastardly Chinese. Eh. Anyway, the most noteworthy thing about this issue is that it features the debut of the Radioactive Man. The R-Man is worth mentioning for a few reasons. 1) He's one of the few early Thor villains besides Loki who was a credible threat to Thor. 2) The Radioactive Man would later return as a member of the Original Master of Evil in the pages of Kirby's "Avengers". 3) Although he's something of a minor character, I believe the R-Man is still floating around the Marvel U in some form or another to this day. At the very least, I remember him being a member of the Thunderbolts a few years ago.
The Art: We get an issue with Kirby! Hallelujah! The art is so much better than the previous issues it almost made me weep with joy. Other than that, the design of the Radiation Man is somewhat uninspired, BUT, the "Radiation Effects" surrounding him are well done.
Whatta I Think: The Good News is that Kirby drew this issue, and it features a somewhat formidable opponent who will actually pop up later to menace Thor again. The Bad News is that this issue features a lot of stuff we've already seen (someone deflecting Thor's Hammer, Thor getting hypnotized and revert to Don Blake and being un-hypnotized, Thor taking out the seemingly unstoppable foe in less than a page). Kinda 50/50, really. 1000 Times Better than the Next Issue I'm gonna Review.
JIM feat. Thor #94
Art: Joe Sinnott, Script: R. Berns. Plot: Stan Lee
The Story: There's a Missile that's out of control! Thankfully, Thor is there to save the day. Meanwhile, in Asgard, Loki's been chained to a wall. Loki can still use his magic to control the missile. Thor stops the missile, but Loki creates an illusion, causing Thor to turn his head, so that when his Hammer returns it hits Thor in the head. Let me say that again. THOR GETS HIT IN THE HEAD WITH HIS OWN HAMMER! This, of course, makes Thor into an Evil Jerk. Thor goes to Asgard, pushing over Heimdall like a schoolyard bully, and frees Loki. Thor and Loki join forces, flip off Odin and his posse, and take off for Earth. The two gods proceed to destroy every noteworthy monument on the planet (the Eiffel Tower, the Leaning Tower of Pizza, the Golden Gate Bridge, the Taj Mahal, ect.), until a bunch of UN Ambassadors beg them to stop. Thor and Loki go to the UN, but Thor falls down a trapdoor (oh, my head hurts), and then his hammer falls down behind him and bonks him on the noggin. Yep. Thor gets hit in the head with his own hammer twice in the same story. Turns out, the entire UN Assembly was really Odin and the other Norse Gods in disguise. Thor becomes Good again and beats Loki in a single panel, while Odin declares that they will use their amazing god powers to fix all the crap Thor and Loki broke and erase everyone's memories so they won't remember the time that Thor destroyed the Eiffel Tower. I wish Odin would erase my memory so I wouldn't remember this comic. Oy.
Notes: Apparently, Missile is not spelled Missle. Who knew? Anyway, This comic is stupid and pointless. That is all.
The Art: Joe Sinnott, whose art was pretty good in previous issues, seemed to be slacking here. Also, I don't like the very Viking-way that Sinnott draws Odin. Doesn't look right.
Whatta I Think: Thor getting hit in the head with his own hammer is the equivalent of Michael Jordan getting hit in the Nuts with a basketball. Also, it was funny when Guy Gardner got bonked in the head and went from being a jerk to being a sensitive guy. It's not funny when Thor gets bonked on the head and turns full on evil. Not funny at all. This is just a terrible, stupid story.
So, we get a Weak Issue of the Fantastic Four, followed by an absolutely Classic Issue. And we get a mildly noteworthy issue of Thor followed by an issue of Thor that should have never been reprinted in any form ever. Don't worry, these will start to even out before long.
Fantastic Four #11
by Jack Kirby on Story/Pencils, Dick Ayers on Inks, and Stan Lee on Plot/Dialogue
Story: Actually, we get two short stories in this one. In the lead story, we get a day in the life of the FF, as they hang out with street kids dressed as the FF and Read Fan Mail (including another Thing directed gag gift from the Yancy Street Gang). We get the story of how Reed and Ben met in college and fought in WWII. We also get a bunch of letters from people saying that Sue is useless, which pisses off Reed. Also, it's Sue's Birthday. In the second story, the Impossible Man who can not only shapeshift, but actually evolve his body to suit the needs of the environment, shows up on earth for a vacation, and causes a bunch of trouble. Reed figures out the best way to get rid of Impy is for everyone on the whole planet to ignore him, so that's what everyone does. Impy gets frustrated and leaves. The End.
Notes: Well, this does mark the debut of the moderately noteworthy Impossible Man. That's something, I suppose. Other than that, we get more of "Hey, Reed is finally starting to admit his feelings for Sue, but Sue's still got a girl boner for Namor".
The Art: It's always fun to watch the King draw Shapeshifters.
Whatta I Think: Kind of a filler issue, really.
Fantastic Four #12
by the same as above
Story: Ben and Alicia are out on the town, when they see soldiers marching through the streets. The soldiers mistake the Thing for the Hulk (I could see that during this time period) and attack him. Eventually the confusion is cleared up. Thunderbolt Ross shows up at FF HQ and requests that they deal with the Hulk, accusing the Hulk of wrecking a bunch of secret Military Experiments. The FF, in their newly redesigned Fantasticar fly off to the desert, where they meet up with Bruce Banner and Rick Jones. Unbeknownst to our heroes, the actual sabateur is revealed to be some skinny Commie guy who kidnaps Rick. Thing gets used as a crash test dummy for a rocket sled, which wrecks because of the sabateur (called the Wrecker by Banner). Discovering Rick has been captured, Bruce turns into the Hulk and immediately gets into a Fight with the Fantastic Four. There are a few pages of Magic Fightyness before the Hulk is conked out by an underground laser. Turns out the Commie Spy has his own Robot, which the Thing smashes. Ben and Sue capture the wrecker and free Rick. The Hulk turns back to Banner, and the FF leave.
Notes: Ahhhh. What a wonderful comic. I read some criticism about this issue, as some people claim the actual fight between the FF and the Hulk is too short and not all that cool. Pish-tosh, I say! If you're reading the books in sequence, this issue is the most wonderful issue of the FF up till this point, and just a wonder of Magic Fightyness. Besides all of that, this is the first major character cross over in an issue of the Fantastic Four, and it marks the debut of the more recognizable version of the Fantasticar. The only oddity I've found in this issue is that Thunderbolt Ross looks fatter than usual. I may need to double check my Hulk collected edition. Oh! And Ben likes down and dirty Jazz. Who knew?
The Art: First, this issue has one of the most ICONIC covers in all of Comic Book History. The scene of the Hulk waiting around the corner to Smash the FF is just a thing of beauty. Other than that, the interiors are pretty rock on as well, even with Dick Ayers's so-so inks. The first look at the Fantasticar and the wild melee in the desert (which includes the Hulk picking up an entire building! Yes!) are just beautifully rendered.
Whatta I Think: Best Issue of the Fantastic Four up to this point, and one of the Best Issues of the Comic in General. Worth picking up the Essential Volume for this story alone.
Journey Into Mystery featuring Thor #93
Pencils/Story: Jack Kirby, Inks: Dick Ayers, Script: R. Berns, Plot: Stan Lee
Story: Over in India, they're having a problem with the Red Chinese. Dr. Donald Blake is inexplicably out in the trenches providing support for the Medical staff, and, not surprisingly, Thor shows up to wreck up a buncha Chinese tanks and missiles. The Chinese respond by creating the Radioactive Man, a Chinese Scientist who makes his entire body into a nuclear reactor. Woo. The Radioactive Man goes to New York and starts wrecking up the joint. Thor, already back in America, takes the fight to R-Man, but the stinking Commie's Radioactive Shield repels Thor's Hammer (really?). The Radioactive Man uses light pulses to hypnotize Thor (again? really?), forcing Thor to throw away his hammer. While R-Man chases after the hammer, Thor reverts to Blake (thus ending the hypnotism...again). After using an X-Ray Device back at his office, Blake finds the Hammer at the bottom of the Hudson River (waitwaitwait...WHAT?). Dr. Blake, despite being a lame weakling, shows good old American Courage, dives into the river, and retrieves the Hammer, turning back into Thor. Thor whips up a Tornado and sends the Radioactive Man flying all the way to China where he promptly explodes on impact. Ouch.
Notes: We get a change of pace this issue. Instead of the dastardly Russians, we get the dastardly Chinese. Eh. Anyway, the most noteworthy thing about this issue is that it features the debut of the Radioactive Man. The R-Man is worth mentioning for a few reasons. 1) He's one of the few early Thor villains besides Loki who was a credible threat to Thor. 2) The Radioactive Man would later return as a member of the Original Master of Evil in the pages of Kirby's "Avengers". 3) Although he's something of a minor character, I believe the R-Man is still floating around the Marvel U in some form or another to this day. At the very least, I remember him being a member of the Thunderbolts a few years ago.
The Art: We get an issue with Kirby! Hallelujah! The art is so much better than the previous issues it almost made me weep with joy. Other than that, the design of the Radiation Man is somewhat uninspired, BUT, the "Radiation Effects" surrounding him are well done.
Whatta I Think: The Good News is that Kirby drew this issue, and it features a somewhat formidable opponent who will actually pop up later to menace Thor again. The Bad News is that this issue features a lot of stuff we've already seen (someone deflecting Thor's Hammer, Thor getting hypnotized and revert to Don Blake and being un-hypnotized, Thor taking out the seemingly unstoppable foe in less than a page). Kinda 50/50, really. 1000 Times Better than the Next Issue I'm gonna Review.
JIM feat. Thor #94
Art: Joe Sinnott, Script: R. Berns. Plot: Stan Lee
The Story: There's a Missile that's out of control! Thankfully, Thor is there to save the day. Meanwhile, in Asgard, Loki's been chained to a wall. Loki can still use his magic to control the missile. Thor stops the missile, but Loki creates an illusion, causing Thor to turn his head, so that when his Hammer returns it hits Thor in the head. Let me say that again. THOR GETS HIT IN THE HEAD WITH HIS OWN HAMMER! This, of course, makes Thor into an Evil Jerk. Thor goes to Asgard, pushing over Heimdall like a schoolyard bully, and frees Loki. Thor and Loki join forces, flip off Odin and his posse, and take off for Earth. The two gods proceed to destroy every noteworthy monument on the planet (the Eiffel Tower, the Leaning Tower of Pizza, the Golden Gate Bridge, the Taj Mahal, ect.), until a bunch of UN Ambassadors beg them to stop. Thor and Loki go to the UN, but Thor falls down a trapdoor (oh, my head hurts), and then his hammer falls down behind him and bonks him on the noggin. Yep. Thor gets hit in the head with his own hammer twice in the same story. Turns out, the entire UN Assembly was really Odin and the other Norse Gods in disguise. Thor becomes Good again and beats Loki in a single panel, while Odin declares that they will use their amazing god powers to fix all the crap Thor and Loki broke and erase everyone's memories so they won't remember the time that Thor destroyed the Eiffel Tower. I wish Odin would erase my memory so I wouldn't remember this comic. Oy.
Notes: Apparently, Missile is not spelled Missle. Who knew? Anyway, This comic is stupid and pointless. That is all.
The Art: Joe Sinnott, whose art was pretty good in previous issues, seemed to be slacking here. Also, I don't like the very Viking-way that Sinnott draws Odin. Doesn't look right.
Whatta I Think: Thor getting hit in the head with his own hammer is the equivalent of Michael Jordan getting hit in the Nuts with a basketball. Also, it was funny when Guy Gardner got bonked in the head and went from being a jerk to being a sensitive guy. It's not funny when Thor gets bonked on the head and turns full on evil. Not funny at all. This is just a terrible, stupid story.
So, we get a Weak Issue of the Fantastic Four, followed by an absolutely Classic Issue. And we get a mildly noteworthy issue of Thor followed by an issue of Thor that should have never been reprinted in any form ever. Don't worry, these will start to even out before long.
Monday, December 10, 2012
Four & Thor 5
A comrade of mine (hey, Bruce!) pointed out in the Comments section, that I've been a bit hard on Stan Lee in these little blogs. Aaaaand he's right. I will admit, I've been a bit bitter about how Stan Lee gets all the public glory, while Jack Kirby is only known in comic circles, and only to the die hards. Having said that, at the very least, Lee's dialogue skills gave early Marvel a unified voice that helped to establish the Shared Universe aspect of the company. Plus, as Bruce pointed out, Lee's editorial skills helped to reign in Kirby's more eccentric tendencies. So, yeah, he did more than just fill in word balloons. Sorry.
Fantastic Four #9
Story/Art: Jack Kirby. Inks: Dick Ayers. Plot/Dialogue: Stan Lee
Story: The FF are broke. Turns out, Reed spent alla the money on the stock market and lost his shirt. Oops! With the Repo Men barking at their heels, the FF get an offer from SM Studios to star in a movie for a cool Million Bucks (big money in 1960). The FF have to hitchhike out to LA (really). When the FF arrive they discover that Namor owns the movie studio. Namor wants to help the FF out by putting them in a flick and paying em big bucks. Subby drops Reed off on an island which just happens to have a Real Cyclops. Reed beats the Cyclops. Meanwhile, Johny is dropped off with an African Tribe (uncomfortable...) who possess a Magic Potion that makes them immune to fire. Yut-oh. Johny escapes by sparking a volcano. In the third "scene" Namor attacks Ben on the beach. The Thing survives the beatdown, but transforms into Ben Grimm at the last second and gets knocked out. Having beaten everyone else, Namor goes to Sue, gloats, and then proposes to her. Unsurprisingly, Sue is not thrilled to hear her pals have gotten tricked and killed. Sue fights Namor, but Namor uses his Electric Eel Powers (huh, he did use it again) and Sonar (yep) to defeat Sue. Before Namor can do anything...unsavory, the other three show up and chase off Namor. In the end, the FF movie comes out, and our heroes score big money. Huzzah!
Notes: Namor's got Sonar? Okay. Also, at one point, Johny uses a new trick, creating an army of flaming doubles. Kirby was always coming up for new tricks for the FF. Cool.
The Art: Dick Ayers is still blorping the inks, but Kirby's Pencils keep evolving. The scene in Hollywood features a bunch of what I assume are celebrity faces. Since I wasn't alive in the late 50s, I don't really know for sure who any of these people are. Still, they're well drawn. Perhaps the best thing about this issue is the fight between the Thing and Namor. This is a full fledged, hardcore Jack Kirby Fight Scene. It's a little short, but it's still a nice little vision of what is to come.
Whatta I Think: This is a goofy story. Very goofy. It's almost a parody story in a way. Still, it's not without its merits, as once again Namor proves to be a formidable enemy, and we get a nice fight scene. Odd, but nice.
Fantastic Four #10
Art/Story: Jack Kirby, Inks: Dick Ayers, Plot/Dialogue: Stan Lee
The Story: After a brief interlude at Alicia's house, we swing by the Marvel Studios, where Stan Lee and Jack Kirby (yes, you heard me) are working on a new issue of the Fantastic Four. Dr. Doom shows up and threatens them, forcing Stan to call up Reed Richards. Reed shows up and Doom sleep gases him. Doom kidnaps Reed and demands that Stan calls the rest of the FF to meet Doom at Doom's Castle (still not openly referred to as Latveria...). Doom reveals that when he was lost in space, he landed on the planet of the Ovoids. The Ovoids have all sorts of neat powers and technology. Doom learned from them, and then returned to Earth for revenge. Using his new Ovoid powers, Doom switches bodies with Reed. The rest of the FF show up, beat up Reed/Doom, and lock him in an air tight bubble with a few air tanks. The FF return to their HQ, where they discover Doom/Reed is shrinking animals. Doom/Reed has a ridiculous story about how if he shrinks them and then regrows them they'll gain new powers (Wha????). The FF are like, cool. Meanwhile, Reed/Doom breaks out by smashing oxygen tanks together (SCIENCE!). Reed/Doom goes to Alicia, but an Invisible Sue knocks him out. Ben and Johny show up, but Ben can't bring himself to KO Reed/Doom. The FF take Reed/Doom back to HQ. Doom/Reed tries to shrink the FF down to nothingness, but Reed/Doom interferes. There's a whole weird thing where Johny uses his fire to create a mirage of that causes Reed and Doom to expose their true natures. Doom is exposed, and accidentally loses his mental hold, causing Reed and Doom to switch bodies again. Doom accidentally gets shot with his own Shrinking Ray and shrinks away to Nothing. Wa-Wa.
Notes: First off, if you think the whole thing about me being involved in my comics is weird, Jack Kirby was slipping himself into his books on and off ever since the 1940s (there's an issue of "Boy Commandos" featuring a cameo by Jack and Joe Simon). Besides the new Psychic Powers, Doom also has a Mental Teleporter Device. That's cool. Also, this issue features the Greatest Doom Death Scene Ever! Death by Shrinkage!
The Art: The Ovoids are uninspired, but otherwise the art is solid Kirby. The bit with the tiny animals is neat, plus in a page or two we get a neat shot of Dinosaur Astronauts. Gotta love that.
Whatta I Think: This is one of those "What Makes a Man?" type of stories, and not a bad one. It's a little awkward and goofy in spots, especially the spot where EvilDoomReed comes up with his ridiculous plan to get the FF to stand in front of a Shrink Ray. Still, not too bad.
Journey Into Mystery featuring Thor #91
Plot: Stan Lee. Script: Larry Lieber (sigh). Art: Joe Sinnott
Story: Loki's stuck in Asgard. He finds a psychic on earth named Sandu, and boosts his power so that he's got God-like powers. He levitates banks and money and makes stuff disappear and other crazy stuff. Thor tries to fight him, but Sandu EASILY beats him, chaining him up and dropping a house on him. Thor begs Odin for help, and Odin sends Valkyries to Thor with Thor's Belt of Strength. Juiced up on his Belt Power, Thor easily bashes his way out and fights Sandu again. This time, Thor throws his hammer, and Sandu traps the Hammer in another dimension. Sandu tries to pick up the hammer, but he can't, and when he tries to pick it up with his mind, he blows a fuse and loses all of his powers. That's it. Thor wins. Hurray?
Notes: Still no Jack Kirby. Sandu easily defeats Thor, and Thor does literally nothing to actually defeat Sandu. Really?
The Art: The Good News? Joe Sinnott's a pretty decent artist. He's no Kirby, but there's a reason he was one of Kirby's best inkers. Long story short, the art is much better than last issue.
Whatta I Think: Ugh. The art is better. That is all. Sandu is lame, and the story is lame. Super lame. Next.
JIM #92
Plot: Stan Lee. Script: R. Berns (Who?). Art: Joe Sinnott.
The Story: Loki's stuck in Asgard, chained to a Rock. The Chains are made of Uru Metal. Thugs show up at Dr. Blake's office (wait, haven't we done this?), and force Dr. Blake to patch up their boss. Blake turns into Thor and easily whoops the thugs. Now, Thor is in a movie. Wait, wasn't that the plot of the issue of FF I just covered? Wha? Anyway, Thor throws his hammer, and somehow Loki magnetizes the hammer so that it travels all the way to Asgard (huh?) and shatters Loki's chains, and then Does Not Return to Thor because it's magnetized now (wait, what?). Odin takes Thor to Asgard (cause, without his Hammer, Thor can't get there). Being subtlely manipulated by Loki, Odin sends Thor into Loki's trap (wait, Loki can hypnotize Odin? What? I'm so confused.). Anyway, Thor goes to the woods and the trees come to life and attack Thor. Thor makes a wooden hammer and smashes trees. Loki uses magic to burn the wooden hammer and creates dragons out of clouds. Thor creates a Stone Hammer and fights off the dragons. But after he throws the hammer, the hammer flies away. Thor follows, and discovers that the Improv Hammer is actually made of Uru (wait? WHAT?), and it is drawn to the Uru Chains and Thor's real Hammer. Thor gets his hammer back, but instead of beating up on Loki, he TATTLES on Loki to Odin, and Odin punishes Loki. Oy vey.
Notes: This story makes no f*****g sense.
The Art: Again, solid Joe Sinnott artwork. I liked the bit with the giant wooden hammer. That was cool.
Whatta I Think: Wow. Just horrible. How can Loki not beat Thor? He can apparently control Thor's hammer at will (while chained to a rock). He can manipulate Odin. He can create Dragons out of Clouds. Seriously, how can he not defeat some blowhard with a hammer? My head hurts. It's amazing they didn't cancel this book at this point. The only bright side is this: Sooner or later, Jack Kirby will return, and he will eventually get a handle on Thor, and this will start to rule. Just not right now.
Fantastic Four #9
Story/Art: Jack Kirby. Inks: Dick Ayers. Plot/Dialogue: Stan Lee
Story: The FF are broke. Turns out, Reed spent alla the money on the stock market and lost his shirt. Oops! With the Repo Men barking at their heels, the FF get an offer from SM Studios to star in a movie for a cool Million Bucks (big money in 1960). The FF have to hitchhike out to LA (really). When the FF arrive they discover that Namor owns the movie studio. Namor wants to help the FF out by putting them in a flick and paying em big bucks. Subby drops Reed off on an island which just happens to have a Real Cyclops. Reed beats the Cyclops. Meanwhile, Johny is dropped off with an African Tribe (uncomfortable...) who possess a Magic Potion that makes them immune to fire. Yut-oh. Johny escapes by sparking a volcano. In the third "scene" Namor attacks Ben on the beach. The Thing survives the beatdown, but transforms into Ben Grimm at the last second and gets knocked out. Having beaten everyone else, Namor goes to Sue, gloats, and then proposes to her. Unsurprisingly, Sue is not thrilled to hear her pals have gotten tricked and killed. Sue fights Namor, but Namor uses his Electric Eel Powers (huh, he did use it again) and Sonar (yep) to defeat Sue. Before Namor can do anything...unsavory, the other three show up and chase off Namor. In the end, the FF movie comes out, and our heroes score big money. Huzzah!
Notes: Namor's got Sonar? Okay. Also, at one point, Johny uses a new trick, creating an army of flaming doubles. Kirby was always coming up for new tricks for the FF. Cool.
The Art: Dick Ayers is still blorping the inks, but Kirby's Pencils keep evolving. The scene in Hollywood features a bunch of what I assume are celebrity faces. Since I wasn't alive in the late 50s, I don't really know for sure who any of these people are. Still, they're well drawn. Perhaps the best thing about this issue is the fight between the Thing and Namor. This is a full fledged, hardcore Jack Kirby Fight Scene. It's a little short, but it's still a nice little vision of what is to come.
Whatta I Think: This is a goofy story. Very goofy. It's almost a parody story in a way. Still, it's not without its merits, as once again Namor proves to be a formidable enemy, and we get a nice fight scene. Odd, but nice.
Fantastic Four #10
Art/Story: Jack Kirby, Inks: Dick Ayers, Plot/Dialogue: Stan Lee
The Story: After a brief interlude at Alicia's house, we swing by the Marvel Studios, where Stan Lee and Jack Kirby (yes, you heard me) are working on a new issue of the Fantastic Four. Dr. Doom shows up and threatens them, forcing Stan to call up Reed Richards. Reed shows up and Doom sleep gases him. Doom kidnaps Reed and demands that Stan calls the rest of the FF to meet Doom at Doom's Castle (still not openly referred to as Latveria...). Doom reveals that when he was lost in space, he landed on the planet of the Ovoids. The Ovoids have all sorts of neat powers and technology. Doom learned from them, and then returned to Earth for revenge. Using his new Ovoid powers, Doom switches bodies with Reed. The rest of the FF show up, beat up Reed/Doom, and lock him in an air tight bubble with a few air tanks. The FF return to their HQ, where they discover Doom/Reed is shrinking animals. Doom/Reed has a ridiculous story about how if he shrinks them and then regrows them they'll gain new powers (Wha????). The FF are like, cool. Meanwhile, Reed/Doom breaks out by smashing oxygen tanks together (SCIENCE!). Reed/Doom goes to Alicia, but an Invisible Sue knocks him out. Ben and Johny show up, but Ben can't bring himself to KO Reed/Doom. The FF take Reed/Doom back to HQ. Doom/Reed tries to shrink the FF down to nothingness, but Reed/Doom interferes. There's a whole weird thing where Johny uses his fire to create a mirage of that causes Reed and Doom to expose their true natures. Doom is exposed, and accidentally loses his mental hold, causing Reed and Doom to switch bodies again. Doom accidentally gets shot with his own Shrinking Ray and shrinks away to Nothing. Wa-Wa.
Notes: First off, if you think the whole thing about me being involved in my comics is weird, Jack Kirby was slipping himself into his books on and off ever since the 1940s (there's an issue of "Boy Commandos" featuring a cameo by Jack and Joe Simon). Besides the new Psychic Powers, Doom also has a Mental Teleporter Device. That's cool. Also, this issue features the Greatest Doom Death Scene Ever! Death by Shrinkage!
The Art: The Ovoids are uninspired, but otherwise the art is solid Kirby. The bit with the tiny animals is neat, plus in a page or two we get a neat shot of Dinosaur Astronauts. Gotta love that.
Whatta I Think: This is one of those "What Makes a Man?" type of stories, and not a bad one. It's a little awkward and goofy in spots, especially the spot where EvilDoomReed comes up with his ridiculous plan to get the FF to stand in front of a Shrink Ray. Still, not too bad.
Journey Into Mystery featuring Thor #91
Plot: Stan Lee. Script: Larry Lieber (sigh). Art: Joe Sinnott
Story: Loki's stuck in Asgard. He finds a psychic on earth named Sandu, and boosts his power so that he's got God-like powers. He levitates banks and money and makes stuff disappear and other crazy stuff. Thor tries to fight him, but Sandu EASILY beats him, chaining him up and dropping a house on him. Thor begs Odin for help, and Odin sends Valkyries to Thor with Thor's Belt of Strength. Juiced up on his Belt Power, Thor easily bashes his way out and fights Sandu again. This time, Thor throws his hammer, and Sandu traps the Hammer in another dimension. Sandu tries to pick up the hammer, but he can't, and when he tries to pick it up with his mind, he blows a fuse and loses all of his powers. That's it. Thor wins. Hurray?
Notes: Still no Jack Kirby. Sandu easily defeats Thor, and Thor does literally nothing to actually defeat Sandu. Really?
The Art: The Good News? Joe Sinnott's a pretty decent artist. He's no Kirby, but there's a reason he was one of Kirby's best inkers. Long story short, the art is much better than last issue.
Whatta I Think: Ugh. The art is better. That is all. Sandu is lame, and the story is lame. Super lame. Next.
JIM #92
Plot: Stan Lee. Script: R. Berns (Who?). Art: Joe Sinnott.
The Story: Loki's stuck in Asgard, chained to a Rock. The Chains are made of Uru Metal. Thugs show up at Dr. Blake's office (wait, haven't we done this?), and force Dr. Blake to patch up their boss. Blake turns into Thor and easily whoops the thugs. Now, Thor is in a movie. Wait, wasn't that the plot of the issue of FF I just covered? Wha? Anyway, Thor throws his hammer, and somehow Loki magnetizes the hammer so that it travels all the way to Asgard (huh?) and shatters Loki's chains, and then Does Not Return to Thor because it's magnetized now (wait, what?). Odin takes Thor to Asgard (cause, without his Hammer, Thor can't get there). Being subtlely manipulated by Loki, Odin sends Thor into Loki's trap (wait, Loki can hypnotize Odin? What? I'm so confused.). Anyway, Thor goes to the woods and the trees come to life and attack Thor. Thor makes a wooden hammer and smashes trees. Loki uses magic to burn the wooden hammer and creates dragons out of clouds. Thor creates a Stone Hammer and fights off the dragons. But after he throws the hammer, the hammer flies away. Thor follows, and discovers that the Improv Hammer is actually made of Uru (wait? WHAT?), and it is drawn to the Uru Chains and Thor's real Hammer. Thor gets his hammer back, but instead of beating up on Loki, he TATTLES on Loki to Odin, and Odin punishes Loki. Oy vey.
Notes: This story makes no f*****g sense.
The Art: Again, solid Joe Sinnott artwork. I liked the bit with the giant wooden hammer. That was cool.
Whatta I Think: Wow. Just horrible. How can Loki not beat Thor? He can apparently control Thor's hammer at will (while chained to a rock). He can manipulate Odin. He can create Dragons out of Clouds. Seriously, how can he not defeat some blowhard with a hammer? My head hurts. It's amazing they didn't cancel this book at this point. The only bright side is this: Sooner or later, Jack Kirby will return, and he will eventually get a handle on Thor, and this will start to rule. Just not right now.
Sunday, December 9, 2012
Four & Thor 4
Alright! More Four & Thor! Oh, and I went back and checked, a couple of things I missed. The Human Torch first started saying "Flame On!" in Issue 2. Also, the Torch could only burn for a limited time. This little limitation would crop up a lot. Ah, the Old Marvel Achilles Heel. Let's get to it.
Fantastic Four #7
by Jack Kirby, with eh Inks by Dick Ayers, and Stan Lee doing Word Balloons.
The Story: Kurrgo, the Master of Planet X is desperate to save his planet from an approaching asteroid. Because they've only got two rockets on Planet X (really? Wow, these guys are stupid), Kurrgo sends his Robot (why not?) to Earth to capture the Fantastic Four so they can solve his problem for him. The Robot uses a machine to make everyone Hate the FF, forcing them to go with the Robot to Planet X. After getting a run down on the situation, Reed makes a Shrinking Gas, shrinks everyone, and stuffs them into one of the two rockets. Reed claims that once they've safely escaped, they can use a canister of Growing Gas to grow back. Unfortunately, Kurrgo decides to hog the Grow Gas canister, and accidentally gets left behind. The rest of the Planet Xers escape, as do the FF, using the Other Ship. While in the safety of outer space, Reed reveals that there was no Growing Gas after all. Turns out, Reed is a bit of a dick.
Notes: There's a couple of things floating around here. First off, we get an instance of the Thing pranking Johny, which is a nice change of pace. Also, we get Johny attempting to use his Nova Flame for the first time. Also, Reed is a bit of a dick.
The Art: Through Dick Ayers blorpy inks, we're starting to get some real Kirby art starting to show up. Sure, the residents of Planet X look kinda dumb (they've got big heads, and they're kinda furry), but the architecture of the Planet is starting to look less like something out of the 50s, and more like something Kirby-esque. Also: Reed goes 2-D to fit through a grate or something, which is cool.
Whatta I Think: On the one hand, this is kind of a goofy story. On the other hand, we're starting to see Kirby come into his own. So, a so-so issue in the end.
Fantastic Four #8
by Jack Kirby, Dick Ayers (inks), and Stan Lee (thbpt!)
Story: Reed's up to something, and Ben's being kept out of the loop. Ben and Johny get into a fight (of course), and Ben storms out. Meanwhile, the Puppet Master decides to destroy the FF, and makes a doll of the Thing out of his special radioactive clay. The Thing gets hypnotized by the Puppet Master. Sue follows Ben into the Puppet Master's house, but he knocks her out with a fog of ether (because everyone has ether vents in their house). The Puppet Master dresses up his blind Stepdaughter, Alicia Masters, as Susan Storm (not the smartest plan, but whatever), and sends her and the hypnotized Thing back to FF HQ. Ben tries to beat up the others, but he accidentally gets the chemicals Reed was working on on him, reverting him to normal, and freeing him from hypnotic control. Meanwhile, the Puppet Master engineers a Jailbreak. Our heroes confront the Puppet Master, who not only has a Puppet Robot, but also a Puppet Winged Horse (why not?). Unable to capture the Puppet Master, the FF turn their attention to the Jailbreak, and whoop up on the prisoners without breaking a sweat. Meanwhile, the Puppet Master prepares to take over the world with his Puppet Master As A King Puppet (really?), but Alicia tries to stop him. In the end, the Puppet Master accidentally trips and falls out a window, seemingly to his doom. Whoops.
Notes: Obviously, this is the first appearance of Alicia Masters, one of the most important and enduring Fantastic Four supporting characters in the comic's history. Also, she's got the hots for Ben right off the bat. Nice. Also, this is the first appearance of the Puppet Master, one of the more prolific D-List FF villains. Oh, and this is the first of many of Reed's failed attempts at curing Ben.
The Art: Again, Kirby's 60s style is really starting to evolve here. The Thing is looking rockier all the time, and we get some beautiful destruction during the jailbreak. The shots of Ben wrecking...well, everything are just amazing. Also, Reed uses his body to rebound bullets. Very cool. Lastly, the Puppet Master is one bizarre, creepy looking character. Seriously, what is with that guy?
Whatta I Think: This story is goofy. I don't mean that in a bad way. I mean it in a wild, goofy, beautiful way. Everything about this story is crazy. Radioactive clay. Bizarre puppet robots. And the Puppet Master trying to conquer the world with a Doll of himself dressed like a King. Yeah. Maybe not a classic, but pretty damn awesome nonetheless.
Journey Into Mystery featuring Thor #89
by Jack Kirby with Dick Ayers on Inks, Larry Lieber and Stan Lee farting along for the ride.
The Story: After a couple of pages of Thor sneaking into his office, and a retelling of Thor's origin, we get down to business. A Mob Boss breaks out of jail, but is injured. His thugs take Dr. Blake hostage and force him to patch up the Boss. Even though Blake does the job, the Boss orders his boys to execute the good doctor. Blake calls out to Odin (wha?), who causes a distraction that allows Dr. D to grab his can and become Thor. Thor stomps the bad guys. The Boss escapes and holds Jane Foster hostage (geez, she's always being held hostage. Stupid dame.). Thor uses ventriloquism (WHAT????) to distract the Boss and free Jane. Thor eventually catches the Mob Boss. The End.
Notes: Eh.
The Art: Well, much like the issues of FF above, we're starting to see Kirby's art style evolve into its 60s look. Other than that, not much to report.
Whatta I Think: I think Kirby wasn't really sure what to do with Thor at this point. After beating Loki, Commies, and Alien Armies, Mobsters don't really seem that big of a deal. Also, the first 6 to 8 pages are pure filler. Also, there's some weird crap in here, like Thor doing ventriloquism or Dr. Blake calling out to Odin for help. I think there's a reason why Kirby would take a break after this issue.
JIM feat Thor #90
Okay, here's the deal: Jack Kirby stepped away from Thor for a few issues because he was drawing a TON of comics at the time. So, let's take a look at this issue, which has no Kirby at all in it. Anyway, the Art is by Al Hartley (who?) with Larry Lieber and Stan Lee trying to salvage this crap.
Story: On the Planet Xarta, Ugarth the Warlord and his son Zano get ready to invade Earth. Meanwhile, on Earth, Dr Don Blake and Thor notice that everyone's acting like Jerks, and people are doing weird crap, like painting polkadots on the highways. Thor investigates, and discovers a spaceship, with a magnetic hull. Reverting to Dr. Blake, Don finds out the aliens are replacing humans. Yep, the Xartans are shapeshifters. Dr. Blake outmaneuvers the aliens, gets his hammer back, becomes Thor, and challenges Zano to a fight. Zano turns into an ice monster, and when that doesn't work, Zano becomes a Gladiator. Thor whoops Zano. Ugarth steps in, using Invisibility to outmaneuver Thor. Thor summons rain to see Ugarth, then wraps him in a net and throws him into outerspace. The remaining Xarthans are held hostage, and Thor forces them to turn into trees forever and ever.
Notes: Absolutely nothing important happens in this issue. Nothing new at all.
The Art: Garbage. Absolute Garbage. There's a reason no one called Al Hartley the King.
Whatta I Think: Does the story sound familiar? It should. It's the Plot of Fantastic Four #2. Almost to the letter. Shapeshifting aliens show up, cause trouble by replacing people, get beaten, and are forced to turn into something harmless. Just replace the world Skrulls with Xarthans, and the Fantastic Four with Thor. Same story. Worse Art. Utter Garbage, and nothing new is added to Thor's mythos. And I've got a few more of these to go. Oy vey.
Well, the Fantastic Four is slowly coming together as a book, while Thor is treading water. Oh well, we haven't even made it out of the first year yet, and we've got ten more to go.
Fantastic Four #7
by Jack Kirby, with eh Inks by Dick Ayers, and Stan Lee doing Word Balloons.
The Story: Kurrgo, the Master of Planet X is desperate to save his planet from an approaching asteroid. Because they've only got two rockets on Planet X (really? Wow, these guys are stupid), Kurrgo sends his Robot (why not?) to Earth to capture the Fantastic Four so they can solve his problem for him. The Robot uses a machine to make everyone Hate the FF, forcing them to go with the Robot to Planet X. After getting a run down on the situation, Reed makes a Shrinking Gas, shrinks everyone, and stuffs them into one of the two rockets. Reed claims that once they've safely escaped, they can use a canister of Growing Gas to grow back. Unfortunately, Kurrgo decides to hog the Grow Gas canister, and accidentally gets left behind. The rest of the Planet Xers escape, as do the FF, using the Other Ship. While in the safety of outer space, Reed reveals that there was no Growing Gas after all. Turns out, Reed is a bit of a dick.
Notes: There's a couple of things floating around here. First off, we get an instance of the Thing pranking Johny, which is a nice change of pace. Also, we get Johny attempting to use his Nova Flame for the first time. Also, Reed is a bit of a dick.
The Art: Through Dick Ayers blorpy inks, we're starting to get some real Kirby art starting to show up. Sure, the residents of Planet X look kinda dumb (they've got big heads, and they're kinda furry), but the architecture of the Planet is starting to look less like something out of the 50s, and more like something Kirby-esque. Also: Reed goes 2-D to fit through a grate or something, which is cool.
Whatta I Think: On the one hand, this is kind of a goofy story. On the other hand, we're starting to see Kirby come into his own. So, a so-so issue in the end.
Fantastic Four #8
by Jack Kirby, Dick Ayers (inks), and Stan Lee (thbpt!)
Story: Reed's up to something, and Ben's being kept out of the loop. Ben and Johny get into a fight (of course), and Ben storms out. Meanwhile, the Puppet Master decides to destroy the FF, and makes a doll of the Thing out of his special radioactive clay. The Thing gets hypnotized by the Puppet Master. Sue follows Ben into the Puppet Master's house, but he knocks her out with a fog of ether (because everyone has ether vents in their house). The Puppet Master dresses up his blind Stepdaughter, Alicia Masters, as Susan Storm (not the smartest plan, but whatever), and sends her and the hypnotized Thing back to FF HQ. Ben tries to beat up the others, but he accidentally gets the chemicals Reed was working on on him, reverting him to normal, and freeing him from hypnotic control. Meanwhile, the Puppet Master engineers a Jailbreak. Our heroes confront the Puppet Master, who not only has a Puppet Robot, but also a Puppet Winged Horse (why not?). Unable to capture the Puppet Master, the FF turn their attention to the Jailbreak, and whoop up on the prisoners without breaking a sweat. Meanwhile, the Puppet Master prepares to take over the world with his Puppet Master As A King Puppet (really?), but Alicia tries to stop him. In the end, the Puppet Master accidentally trips and falls out a window, seemingly to his doom. Whoops.
Notes: Obviously, this is the first appearance of Alicia Masters, one of the most important and enduring Fantastic Four supporting characters in the comic's history. Also, she's got the hots for Ben right off the bat. Nice. Also, this is the first appearance of the Puppet Master, one of the more prolific D-List FF villains. Oh, and this is the first of many of Reed's failed attempts at curing Ben.
The Art: Again, Kirby's 60s style is really starting to evolve here. The Thing is looking rockier all the time, and we get some beautiful destruction during the jailbreak. The shots of Ben wrecking...well, everything are just amazing. Also, Reed uses his body to rebound bullets. Very cool. Lastly, the Puppet Master is one bizarre, creepy looking character. Seriously, what is with that guy?
Whatta I Think: This story is goofy. I don't mean that in a bad way. I mean it in a wild, goofy, beautiful way. Everything about this story is crazy. Radioactive clay. Bizarre puppet robots. And the Puppet Master trying to conquer the world with a Doll of himself dressed like a King. Yeah. Maybe not a classic, but pretty damn awesome nonetheless.
Journey Into Mystery featuring Thor #89
by Jack Kirby with Dick Ayers on Inks, Larry Lieber and Stan Lee farting along for the ride.
The Story: After a couple of pages of Thor sneaking into his office, and a retelling of Thor's origin, we get down to business. A Mob Boss breaks out of jail, but is injured. His thugs take Dr. Blake hostage and force him to patch up the Boss. Even though Blake does the job, the Boss orders his boys to execute the good doctor. Blake calls out to Odin (wha?), who causes a distraction that allows Dr. D to grab his can and become Thor. Thor stomps the bad guys. The Boss escapes and holds Jane Foster hostage (geez, she's always being held hostage. Stupid dame.). Thor uses ventriloquism (WHAT????) to distract the Boss and free Jane. Thor eventually catches the Mob Boss. The End.
Notes: Eh.
The Art: Well, much like the issues of FF above, we're starting to see Kirby's art style evolve into its 60s look. Other than that, not much to report.
Whatta I Think: I think Kirby wasn't really sure what to do with Thor at this point. After beating Loki, Commies, and Alien Armies, Mobsters don't really seem that big of a deal. Also, the first 6 to 8 pages are pure filler. Also, there's some weird crap in here, like Thor doing ventriloquism or Dr. Blake calling out to Odin for help. I think there's a reason why Kirby would take a break after this issue.
JIM feat Thor #90
Okay, here's the deal: Jack Kirby stepped away from Thor for a few issues because he was drawing a TON of comics at the time. So, let's take a look at this issue, which has no Kirby at all in it. Anyway, the Art is by Al Hartley (who?) with Larry Lieber and Stan Lee trying to salvage this crap.
Story: On the Planet Xarta, Ugarth the Warlord and his son Zano get ready to invade Earth. Meanwhile, on Earth, Dr Don Blake and Thor notice that everyone's acting like Jerks, and people are doing weird crap, like painting polkadots on the highways. Thor investigates, and discovers a spaceship, with a magnetic hull. Reverting to Dr. Blake, Don finds out the aliens are replacing humans. Yep, the Xartans are shapeshifters. Dr. Blake outmaneuvers the aliens, gets his hammer back, becomes Thor, and challenges Zano to a fight. Zano turns into an ice monster, and when that doesn't work, Zano becomes a Gladiator. Thor whoops Zano. Ugarth steps in, using Invisibility to outmaneuver Thor. Thor summons rain to see Ugarth, then wraps him in a net and throws him into outerspace. The remaining Xarthans are held hostage, and Thor forces them to turn into trees forever and ever.
Notes: Absolutely nothing important happens in this issue. Nothing new at all.
The Art: Garbage. Absolute Garbage. There's a reason no one called Al Hartley the King.
Whatta I Think: Does the story sound familiar? It should. It's the Plot of Fantastic Four #2. Almost to the letter. Shapeshifting aliens show up, cause trouble by replacing people, get beaten, and are forced to turn into something harmless. Just replace the world Skrulls with Xarthans, and the Fantastic Four with Thor. Same story. Worse Art. Utter Garbage, and nothing new is added to Thor's mythos. And I've got a few more of these to go. Oy vey.
Well, the Fantastic Four is slowly coming together as a book, while Thor is treading water. Oh well, we haven't even made it out of the first year yet, and we've got ten more to go.
Saturday, December 8, 2012
Four & Thor 3
I should have had my webcomic up by now, but I'm running slow today. Instead, let's run another installment of Four n' Thor. Why not?
Fantastic Four #5
by Jack Kirby, with Joe Sinnott on Inks (Huzzah!) and Stan Lee filling word balloons.
The Story: Dr. Doom, flying around in a helicopter, drops an electrified asbestos net on the FF's HQ and holds Sue hostage. Everyone is dragged to Doom's Castle where Doom wants our heroes to travel back in time (via Doom's Time Machine, of course) to retrieve Blackbeard's Treasure. Reed, Ben, and Johny go back in time, Ben gets a ridiculous costume, and our heroes take over a ship. We find out that the Thing is, in fact, the legendary Blackbeard (why not?), and they've got the jewels. Reed pulls a bait and switch, tossing the jewels and replacing them with chains. Ben tries to stay in the past, but a sudden storm shipwrecks the three. Shortly, Doom brings them all back to the present, only to reveal that the jewels were enchanted by Merlin (of course. Why not?), and they grant their user invulnerability. Doom discovers Reed's little trick, and imprisons our heroes in an oxygenless room to die. Sue uses her invisibility to flip some switches and save the day. Ultimately, Doom escapes via jet pack.
Notes: Whew. Where to start? We get the first appearance of Dr. Doom, one of the most important, most iconic, most influential villains in comic book history. A villain that's been featured in movies, cartoons, video games, toys, and clothing. And who created that iconic design? Yep, Jack Kirby. Doom's costume is almost unchanged in his first appearance. The only notable difference I've noticed is that in this one issue, Doom doesn't have a cape. Other than that, this is Doom in all his awesome majestic glory. Anyway, we don't get Latveria yet, but Doom has his own Castle, his own pet Tiger (yeah, baby!), his own helicopter, and, of course, a Time Machine! In his First Appearance, Doom has already Mastered Time Travel! Crazy! And he's got a jetpack (jetpacks are the coolest). Oh! And this is the first appearance of one of Doom's Robot Dr. Doom decoys! Magic. Pure Magic.
The Art: It's early 60s Jack Kirby Inked by early 60s Joe Sinnott. It's not as jaw dropping as late 60s Jack Kirby inked by late 60s Joe Sinnott, but it's still pretty damn good.
Whatta I Think: Dr. Doom! Dr. Doom! Dr. Doom! Yes! Yes! Yes!
Fantastic Four #6
by Jack Kirby with Dick Ayers doing okay on Inks and Stan Lee doing the thing with the word balloons.
Story: Our heroes are trying to find Dr. Doom. Ironically, Dr. Doom finds Namor, and gets Namor to team up with him to destroy the Four (well, everyone but Sue. Namor wants to bang Sue hardcore style.). Namor shows up at the Four's HQ and pleasantly tries to take Sue out on a date. Before that can happen, the entire building gets sucked into Space. Yut-oh! Turns out that Namor planted a Magnetic Grabber (can we blame Stan for that name?) in the basement. As a result, Doom can pull the Four's Building behind his space ship. Yep, Doom's got a Spaceship, too. Doom's plan is to chuck the FF and Namor into the Sun. Our heroes try to stop Doom, but the Not-so-Good Doctor thwarts them at every turn. Namor decides enough is enough, and launches himself into Doom's ship, outmaneuvers Doom, and sends Doom spiraling into the void of space. After that, Namor returns the FF's HQ to where it belongs, and takes off, sending the Magnetic Grabber to the bottom of the sea.
Notes: We get lots of stuff here. We get the introduction of the FF's Secret Express Elevator (neato). We get another cut away of the FF's HQ. Reed mentions that the FF's costumes are made of Unstable Molecules (sigh. Probably gotta give Stan Lee credit for that one). We also get the first mention of the Thing's longtime, never seen, archrivals, the dreaded Yancy Street Gang. Other fun stuff: Johny tries to fly into outer space with his Flame On. Idiot. He sputters out and nearly drifts off to his doom. Idiot. Oh, Dr. Doom has a cape now, which is cool. Oh, and apparently, Namor has the powers of an electric eel, allowing him to absorb and redirect electricity. I wonder if he ever uses that power ever again? Hmmm. Also, this marks the first time Dr. Doom "dies". Another interesting note: Sue has definitely got the hots for Namor, and Reed really doesn't seem to care at all. Hell, the Thing gets more steamed about everything than Reed does.
The Art: Kinda chunky, but there's still some cool moments, like the various shots of Namor's lost undersea kingdom. There's also some cool shots of Namor swimming with dolphins. I wanna swim with dolphins. The big jaw dropper is a killer shot of the Four's HQ floating high above New York. Lovely.
Whatta I Think: Dude. It's a Supervillain Team Up. There's a building flying through space. There's Namor kicking ass in the craziest way possible. Doom dying (for now). Everything a brilliant comic should have.
Journey Into Mystery featuring Thor #87
by Jack Kirby with Dick Ayers (jeez, that guy inked a lot of Kirby), Larry Lieber continuing to waste our time filling in word balloons, and Stan Lee getting a credit for doing nothing.
Story: More crap with the Reds. A bunch of scientists are defecting to the Reds. Dr. Blake decides to make himself human bait by developing a BIOLOGICAL WEAPON (!!!). Surely enough, a fake photographer uses hypnotic gas (I gotta get me some of that) to abduct Dr. Blake and cart him off to Russia. Down in the dungeon with the other stolen scientists, Blake turns into Thor and wrecks up the place. There's a brief turn over, but in the end, Thor prevails, saving the scientists and smashing the Reds' Citadel.
Notes: Really nothing worth mentioning. Kind of a retread of the previous Commie issue. Although, I gotta say, Dr. Blake creating a biological weapon just so he can get kidnapped... that's just irresponsible.
The Art: Again, nothing of real noteworthiness.
Whatta I Think: Ugh. Another issue where Thor fights Commies. A bit of a waste of time. We'll have a few more of these before we get to the good stuff.
JIM feat. Thor #88
by Jack Kirby with Dick Ayers, Larry Leiber, and Stan Lee signing paychecks.
The Story: Stuck in Asgard, but craving revenge, Loki uses his Magic to discover Thor's whole Dr. Blake/can't lose the Hammer for more than 60 seconds weakness. Shapeshifting into a snake, Loki sneaks past Heimdall (people sneaking past Heimdall will become something of a running gag), and returns to Earth. Hypnotizing Jane Foster, Loki uses her as bait to separate Thor from his Hammer, trapping it behind a force field. Stuck as lame ass Dr. Blake, all Don can do is watch as the God of Mischief runs amok pulling massive pranks across the World. In the end, Blake uses a Fake Plastic Thor (wha?) to fake out Loki, tricking him into dropping his forcefield. Blake regains his Thor-ness and beats Loki in no time flat, returning him to Asgard. Hooray!
Notes: Welp, first off, we get the first full body appearance of Odin. Also, we get the more traditional version of Hiemdall, and a better glimpse of Asgard. We also see the full power of Loki's incredible magics, as he shapeshifts a bunch, and reshapes reality at will, turning people into blank images (crazy) and turning streets and cars into candy and ice cream (super crazy). The ending is a bit ridiculous, as Thor manages to outmaneuver Loki (who's turned into a Pigeon) with a bag of nuts and a volley ball net. Silly stuff to be sure.
Oh, and even though the cover has Odin mention that Thor and Loki are brothers, the two of them don't really acknowledge it during the story. The only actual indication is that Odin states that Loki is his son. Weird.
The Art: Loki does some crazy stuff with his magic. Guns with wings, baby. Guns with wings.
Whatta I Think: Okay, the ending is silly. Really silly. Still, I feel like this is a better installment of the Thor/Loki rivalry than the first one. If nothing else, we really get to see why the God of Mischief got his title.
Two killer issues of FF, plus one crummy issue of Thor, and one pretty good one. Things are starting to come together.
Fantastic Four #5
by Jack Kirby, with Joe Sinnott on Inks (Huzzah!) and Stan Lee filling word balloons.
The Story: Dr. Doom, flying around in a helicopter, drops an electrified asbestos net on the FF's HQ and holds Sue hostage. Everyone is dragged to Doom's Castle where Doom wants our heroes to travel back in time (via Doom's Time Machine, of course) to retrieve Blackbeard's Treasure. Reed, Ben, and Johny go back in time, Ben gets a ridiculous costume, and our heroes take over a ship. We find out that the Thing is, in fact, the legendary Blackbeard (why not?), and they've got the jewels. Reed pulls a bait and switch, tossing the jewels and replacing them with chains. Ben tries to stay in the past, but a sudden storm shipwrecks the three. Shortly, Doom brings them all back to the present, only to reveal that the jewels were enchanted by Merlin (of course. Why not?), and they grant their user invulnerability. Doom discovers Reed's little trick, and imprisons our heroes in an oxygenless room to die. Sue uses her invisibility to flip some switches and save the day. Ultimately, Doom escapes via jet pack.
Notes: Whew. Where to start? We get the first appearance of Dr. Doom, one of the most important, most iconic, most influential villains in comic book history. A villain that's been featured in movies, cartoons, video games, toys, and clothing. And who created that iconic design? Yep, Jack Kirby. Doom's costume is almost unchanged in his first appearance. The only notable difference I've noticed is that in this one issue, Doom doesn't have a cape. Other than that, this is Doom in all his awesome majestic glory. Anyway, we don't get Latveria yet, but Doom has his own Castle, his own pet Tiger (yeah, baby!), his own helicopter, and, of course, a Time Machine! In his First Appearance, Doom has already Mastered Time Travel! Crazy! And he's got a jetpack (jetpacks are the coolest). Oh! And this is the first appearance of one of Doom's Robot Dr. Doom decoys! Magic. Pure Magic.
The Art: It's early 60s Jack Kirby Inked by early 60s Joe Sinnott. It's not as jaw dropping as late 60s Jack Kirby inked by late 60s Joe Sinnott, but it's still pretty damn good.
Whatta I Think: Dr. Doom! Dr. Doom! Dr. Doom! Yes! Yes! Yes!
Fantastic Four #6
by Jack Kirby with Dick Ayers doing okay on Inks and Stan Lee doing the thing with the word balloons.
Story: Our heroes are trying to find Dr. Doom. Ironically, Dr. Doom finds Namor, and gets Namor to team up with him to destroy the Four (well, everyone but Sue. Namor wants to bang Sue hardcore style.). Namor shows up at the Four's HQ and pleasantly tries to take Sue out on a date. Before that can happen, the entire building gets sucked into Space. Yut-oh! Turns out that Namor planted a Magnetic Grabber (can we blame Stan for that name?) in the basement. As a result, Doom can pull the Four's Building behind his space ship. Yep, Doom's got a Spaceship, too. Doom's plan is to chuck the FF and Namor into the Sun. Our heroes try to stop Doom, but the Not-so-Good Doctor thwarts them at every turn. Namor decides enough is enough, and launches himself into Doom's ship, outmaneuvers Doom, and sends Doom spiraling into the void of space. After that, Namor returns the FF's HQ to where it belongs, and takes off, sending the Magnetic Grabber to the bottom of the sea.
Notes: We get lots of stuff here. We get the introduction of the FF's Secret Express Elevator (neato). We get another cut away of the FF's HQ. Reed mentions that the FF's costumes are made of Unstable Molecules (sigh. Probably gotta give Stan Lee credit for that one). We also get the first mention of the Thing's longtime, never seen, archrivals, the dreaded Yancy Street Gang. Other fun stuff: Johny tries to fly into outer space with his Flame On. Idiot. He sputters out and nearly drifts off to his doom. Idiot. Oh, Dr. Doom has a cape now, which is cool. Oh, and apparently, Namor has the powers of an electric eel, allowing him to absorb and redirect electricity. I wonder if he ever uses that power ever again? Hmmm. Also, this marks the first time Dr. Doom "dies". Another interesting note: Sue has definitely got the hots for Namor, and Reed really doesn't seem to care at all. Hell, the Thing gets more steamed about everything than Reed does.
The Art: Kinda chunky, but there's still some cool moments, like the various shots of Namor's lost undersea kingdom. There's also some cool shots of Namor swimming with dolphins. I wanna swim with dolphins. The big jaw dropper is a killer shot of the Four's HQ floating high above New York. Lovely.
Whatta I Think: Dude. It's a Supervillain Team Up. There's a building flying through space. There's Namor kicking ass in the craziest way possible. Doom dying (for now). Everything a brilliant comic should have.
Journey Into Mystery featuring Thor #87
by Jack Kirby with Dick Ayers (jeez, that guy inked a lot of Kirby), Larry Lieber continuing to waste our time filling in word balloons, and Stan Lee getting a credit for doing nothing.
Story: More crap with the Reds. A bunch of scientists are defecting to the Reds. Dr. Blake decides to make himself human bait by developing a BIOLOGICAL WEAPON (!!!). Surely enough, a fake photographer uses hypnotic gas (I gotta get me some of that) to abduct Dr. Blake and cart him off to Russia. Down in the dungeon with the other stolen scientists, Blake turns into Thor and wrecks up the place. There's a brief turn over, but in the end, Thor prevails, saving the scientists and smashing the Reds' Citadel.
Notes: Really nothing worth mentioning. Kind of a retread of the previous Commie issue. Although, I gotta say, Dr. Blake creating a biological weapon just so he can get kidnapped... that's just irresponsible.
The Art: Again, nothing of real noteworthiness.
Whatta I Think: Ugh. Another issue where Thor fights Commies. A bit of a waste of time. We'll have a few more of these before we get to the good stuff.
JIM feat. Thor #88
by Jack Kirby with Dick Ayers, Larry Leiber, and Stan Lee signing paychecks.
The Story: Stuck in Asgard, but craving revenge, Loki uses his Magic to discover Thor's whole Dr. Blake/can't lose the Hammer for more than 60 seconds weakness. Shapeshifting into a snake, Loki sneaks past Heimdall (people sneaking past Heimdall will become something of a running gag), and returns to Earth. Hypnotizing Jane Foster, Loki uses her as bait to separate Thor from his Hammer, trapping it behind a force field. Stuck as lame ass Dr. Blake, all Don can do is watch as the God of Mischief runs amok pulling massive pranks across the World. In the end, Blake uses a Fake Plastic Thor (wha?) to fake out Loki, tricking him into dropping his forcefield. Blake regains his Thor-ness and beats Loki in no time flat, returning him to Asgard. Hooray!
Notes: Welp, first off, we get the first full body appearance of Odin. Also, we get the more traditional version of Hiemdall, and a better glimpse of Asgard. We also see the full power of Loki's incredible magics, as he shapeshifts a bunch, and reshapes reality at will, turning people into blank images (crazy) and turning streets and cars into candy and ice cream (super crazy). The ending is a bit ridiculous, as Thor manages to outmaneuver Loki (who's turned into a Pigeon) with a bag of nuts and a volley ball net. Silly stuff to be sure.
Oh, and even though the cover has Odin mention that Thor and Loki are brothers, the two of them don't really acknowledge it during the story. The only actual indication is that Odin states that Loki is his son. Weird.
The Art: Loki does some crazy stuff with his magic. Guns with wings, baby. Guns with wings.
Whatta I Think: Okay, the ending is silly. Really silly. Still, I feel like this is a better installment of the Thor/Loki rivalry than the first one. If nothing else, we really get to see why the God of Mischief got his title.
Two killer issues of FF, plus one crummy issue of Thor, and one pretty good one. Things are starting to come together.
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