By Steve Moore (w); Dave Gibbons (a); Andy Yanchus (c) & Jim Salicrup (e)
I remember seeing Doctor Who comics on the spinner racks in corner stores as a toddler and they looked powerfully lame. Look at this boring cover with its limited color palette. How could a frumpy white guy with an afro and a scarf compete with the likes of Teen Titans or X-Men?
He couldn't.
But growing up means growing wise and sophisticated. Little did the stupid toddler with a mullet that I once was realize that some of the best stories Marvel Comics ever published were hidden behind these drab covers.
By the mid-80's Doctor Who had invaded American shores after 20 years as a British television staple. Marvel's UK division had produced a weekly, then monthly magazine dedicated to the Time Lord since 1980 and this mid-80s series reprints the best comics from the British magazine. This particular story involving Prometheus taking Doctor Who to the planet Olympus to meet the gods was originally published (in glorious black and white) in early 1981.
There was a surprising amount of writing and artistic talent floating around the U.K. working in relative obscurity at the time, many of whom would bust out in the much larger overseas market: Pat Mills and John Wagner, Jamie Delano, Steve Dillon, John Bolton, Dave Gibbons, Alan Moore, Alan Davis, Paul Neary, David Lloyd, Grant Morrison, Peter Milligan and on and on. One guy who never got his due across the pond was writer Steve Moore.
Today, he's probably best remembered as "Alan Moore's buddy (no relation)" but his writing skills have gone grossly under-appreciated. His stories weren't loud, rude or flashy but resembled great myths: labyrinthine moralistic tales in the long-standing tradition of John Bunyan. He's gone now and his original comics (his Father Shandor series in the legendary British magazine Warrior is one of my favorite comics ever) are incredibly difficult to come by but if you can track them down, rush to do so. This Doctor Who reprint series from the 80's is a good place to start as I'm sure you won't have trouble finding them in the back issue bins of your better comics retailer for dirt cheap.
This particular issue also contains a reprint of an earlier Moore-Dillon tale.
***
MUSIC SUCKS! DESTRUCTION 'Infernal Overkill'
I'm no walking encyclopedia metallum but this is one of the best metal albums I've ever heard. It's got a little bit of everything you want in a mid-80's metal album: speed and thrash and a little darker something extra. But don't call them a black metal band, they don't like it. They were a good halfway point between Slayer and Celtic Frost, meaning they had speed at their disposal, but their ideas were a bit more varied and interesting. They could shred with the best of them and they favored a dark, heavy tone. They were one of the most complete bands of the era. The German trio continues to this day with two (of three) original members still in the fold (Mike on guitar and Schmier on bass). I highly recommend this album to any and all metal fans, but especially to those interested in the darker end of metal's early days.
***
MOVIES SUCK! THE STUFF
Directed by Larry Cohen
Cast - Michael Moriarty, Garrett Morris, Andrea Marcovicci & Paul Sorvino
I only just found out about this movie in the last couple years on some "best obscure horror" list on one of those clickbait websites. It's not the best of movies but it has that 80's feel in abundance.
The Stuff is like a dry run for the much more popular The Blob, which would follow shortly. Ironically, The Stuff is the better of the two, it gives you all the dangerous goo and melting people you could possibly want with better writing and a superior cast. Just looking at the cast listed above it's hard to get a sense of what kind of movie it will be with that mish-mash, but for your information it has a fairly light tone considering some of the horrific dissolving and child endangerment scenes.
If you had to elevator pitch the film to your movie night galpals you might say it's like The Blob meets They Live and not be far off the mark. The Stuff is recommended for a "fun scares" kind of night, it will probably make your most squeamish friend cringe and cover her eyes while you down another handful of popcorn and grin with sick pleasure.
By Doug Moench (w); Don Perlin (a); Karen Pocock (l); Phil Rachelson (c) & Len Wein (e)
This is what I'm talking about. You don't see him on the cover, but Doctor Glitternight has got to be the eeriest Marvel villain of all-time. He reminds me of the Tall Man from Phantasm, only Glitternight came first. He's evil incarnate, a stone-faced, pupil-less hypnotic sorcerer who steals souls and turns the once beautiful Topaz into the horrible creature you do see on the cover, He floats like a manta ray overhead and projects black light onto his victims, stealing their very life-force. Unfortunately he's pretty much forgotten today, but I think he's the best unused Marvel villain there is.
Oddly, there is a 1938 crime film called The Amazing Doctor Clitterhouse (which has an amazing resemblance to the word clitoris, but nevermind), it's probable that Glitternight was at least partly inspired by it.
Glitternight was created by Doug Moench who took over the series at issue #20 and stayed on til the series ended with #43. I first came to deeply respect him after reading his run on Batman from the early '90's. For my money, he remains one of thee great Batman writers. For what it's worth he co-authored the famous Knightfall storyline that Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight Rises is partially based on. By that time he was a master craftsman who easily balanced words with pictures and allowed the characters to dictate the story. At this early stage in his career, he was out of his mind, and I mean that in the best way possible.
He came up in comics through the skinflint WarrenPublishing company where he penned numerous tales of the bizarre and the macabre in the pages of Eerie and Creepy magazines before finding a home at Marvel and subsequently pigeonholed there as "the horror guy". One supposes he felt the pressure or the need to keep upping the stakes in his increasingly weird tales. After the invention of Doctor Glitternight, those stakes would never get higher, not on Werewolf By Night anyway. The series wasn't long for this world after this point though.
It was 1975, the horror fad at Marvel was dying down to a quiet murmur and I imagine Moench was looking for a way out of his typecast anyway. He had just been given the keys to the new Inhumans series with new artist George Perez and it seems he was focusing more on that. By the time Inhumans hit the shelves this storyline was already in the bag and though the Glitternight story is arguably the pinnacle of this series, the fall that came after was precipitous indeed. Unfortunately, both the Inhumans and Werewolf By Night series would peter out within the course of the next two years.
But it turned out, he had already given himself a way out of the horror zone and found a way in to more mainstream superhero comics to increase the longevity of his career. Five issues after this one, Moench introduced a superhero into the pages of Werewolf, his name was Moon Knight and he was a corporate sponsored vigilante. By the time he was given his own series just a few years later, he was a Lamont Cranston / The Shadow inspired multiple personality with ties to ancient Egypt and enhanced with werewolf infected blood. He remains one of the more intriguing heroes in Marvel's pantheon, but few, if any, writers have gotten him right since Moench left for DC to join the Bat-team.
When the Comics Code Authority eased its restrictions against depicting horror tropes such as vampires, werewolves, zombies and monsters, Marvel Comics jumped in with four feet. Though the trend didn't last long, the company managed to produce some great stories, especially on this series and in the pages of Frankenstein's Monster. This issue in particular is a true highlight of their efforts.
WHAT ELSE WERE THE KIDS UP TO BACK THEN?
After getting the creeps from reading Werewolf By Night it was time for a breather. It was time for something uplifting. Savvy audiences might then have turned to this album:
RUSH - FLY BY NIGHT Rush's second album is a bit of a transition. They were about half a year away from releasing the 'Caress of Steel' album which featured a bit of more of what would come to be recognized as the Rush sound with moodier numbers and the ubiquitous side-long prog suites. 'Fly By Night' is a straight up hard rock album with mostly short, fast-moving numbers and is arguably more focused in its aims. The inclusion of the 8-minute mini-suite "By Tor and the Snowdog" announced that this was a transitional record in many ways.
Rush released their first album the previous summer with original drummer John Rutsey. It sunk with little trace. Part Budgie, part UFO the band appeared destined to fail commercially. Though the rockin' "In The Mood" and somewhat doom-y closing track "Working Man" are among the band's best numbers and with an incentive laced Canadian Content (MAPL) system in place, Canadian radio stations found it easy to ignore their native sons. It took a DJ from Cleveland named Donna Halper to discover the band and help them re-write the history of Canadian rock music. 'Fly By Night' was drummer / lyricist Neil Peart's first outing with the band giving Rush their signature pausiness. It was also Peart's love of fantasy and sci-fi that lent the band their trademark lyrical mysticism.
Rush wouldn't come to international prominence until a year and two albums later with '2112'.
But after absorbing the latest album from this emerging Canadian prog trio, it was time to watch a little TV. Flipping through the channels, the savvy viewer would have landed on ABC's Movie of the Week. Tuesday March 4, 1975 the movie was Trilogy of Terror, a three-part anthology of Richard Matheson stories, all starring Karen Black and directed by Dan Curtis.
Richard Matheson is most remembered as a writer for the original Twilight Zone television show and as the writer of such novels as I Am Legend (a personal favorite and partial inspiration for Night of the Living Dead), Hell House and The Shrinking Man. He was also an elite short story writer, his Shock series alone (4 volumes) is a must-read for genre fans. While his novels were often dark and poignant, his stories were crisp, sharp and sardonic, sometimes even silly. The stories featured in Trilogy of Terror were of the latter variety, though you wouldn't notice at first glance through director Curtis's dark interpretation.
This made-for-TV movie is best known for the third and final segment, "Amelia", which was an adaptation of Matheson's "Prey" (found in the Shockwaves or Shock IV collection). The story is about a woman who buys a Zuni fetish doll as a gift. When the doll comes to life and attacks her with spear, razor-sharp teeth and crazed, but fixed expression it is truly frightening. Jon Niccum of the Lawrence Journal-World wrote that this segment was "arguably the scariest piece ever crafted under the made-for-TV label." Trilogy of Terror deserves a special place among made-for-TV horror lore, along with the original Don't Be Afraid of the Dark for having memorable, possibly even traumatizing scenes of a totally supernatural origin.
The first two segments aren't nearly as memorable as "Amelia", though they're quite good. However, they are opening acts at best, the headliner is well worth the wait. You can watch the whole film below:
By Stan Lee (w,e); Jack Kirby (p); Chic Stone (i) & Artie Simek (l)
The crisp bold line at the top of the cover reads "The World's Greatest Comic Magazine!" and for four or five years, it was true.
This issue marks the beginning of the greatest sequence of issues in superhero comics history. The standard of excellence established by Stan Lee & Jack Kirby on this peak era has never been matched. This is the issue where the Fantastic Four first meets Medusa the Inhuman, as a member of the team's newest, truest rivals, the Frightful Four. As plots and subplots develop, Medusa leads to the discovery of the Inhumans, which leads into Silver Surfer and the Galactus saga, which leads to Wakanda and the Black Panther, all three of which, it's worth pointing out have been or are being developed for the silver screen. The reign of excellence continued for another 50 issues after that, but this particular period is the one everybody remembers. This is where it started really cooking.
Medusa's First Appearance.
Jack Kirby transcends the medium of comics. Even non-comic book fans have come across his creations if not his artwork, there's just no getting around it. All comic fans know what Kirby hands are, what a Kirby crackle looks like and what Kirby-esque feels like. He's the greatest storyteller in superhero comics, this run on Fantastic Four is his finest hour and this issue begins his absolute pinnacle. Though he'd been Fantastic Four artist since issue #1, it took him about two years to truly find his voice on the book. There's no shame in it, it was a new series with a new approach to characters at what was essentially an all-new publisher (of superhero comics). It wasn't until around about this issue or just a couple issues before it that The Thing really starts to look like The Thing the way we remember him today. He'd gone through several "drafts" of doughy, craggy and angular before Kirby finally settled on the distinctive look he still carries to this day. Kirby's trademark Manhattan backgrounds started to look like Kirby backgrounds, detailed with clean lines (see bottom left corner of cover image above). It seemed that after three years of playing wait-and-see, it was safe to consider Fantastic Four a success and therefore, something to invest the full power of his talent into.
The Frightful Four.
In this story we meet the Frightful Four, a motley crew of chagrined and defeated villains from F.F. member Human Torch's solo adventures in Strange Tales magazine, opportunistic crooks and a mysterious new female baddie on the scene. Attention to detail in the continuity between issues is something that Marvel fans have always loved about the publisher, they were the first to take it seriously. One of the joys of reading Marvel comics was watching characters develop over the course of years and eventually, generations. When I was very, very young there was a comic called Marvel Saga which retold the whole history of Marvel Comics from the 1960's, issue by issue, including this one. So it took me years, decades even to trust Medusa as the heroine she has become. She was just so thoroughly evil in her early appearances. I guess first impressions really are important. I mean, she ran with a group called the Frightful Four, they knew who and what they were, they were the bad guys and proud of it. Strangely, Frightful Four member Sandman would go through a similar switch in allegiance, albeit much later.
After the Frightful Four crash the Fantastic Four's headquarters, the Baxter Building, a battle royal ensues. The action is intense, the wide-angle staging is classic Kirby and the bad guys nearly win. In the grand early Marvel style, only an incredible effort saves Reed, Sue, Ben and Johnny from certain death, when they turn the tables the bad guys, they escape cleanly to return but two issues later and three issues after that for what would be the team's greatest story yet up to that point. The Thing, feeling depressed about his appearance quits the team and ends up a member of the Frightful Four. The fact that his conversion continues for more than one issue is a perfect example of what made Marvel great in those early years, readers truly didn't know what to expect, but the seeds had been planted for them expect any changes to be long term.
WHAT ELSE WERE THE KIDS UP TO BACK THEN?
After being blown away by Stan and Jack the hipper of British audiences didn't walk, but ran to pick up the debut album of a band that were to the Rolling Stones, what the Rolling Stones were to the Beatles in terms of raunchiness:
THE PRETTY THINGS - SELF-TITLED
If you have the world's most impressive memory or something close to it, you'll notice that both albums from 1965 featured in Comics Suck! so far (the first was The Zombies 'Begin Here') have kicked off with a cover of the Bo Diddley classic "Roadrunner". The difference is The Zombies album landed on shelves then sunk like a stone in their home territory while The Pretties debut placed a tidy #6 on the album chart.
Pretty Things on tour in New Zealand 1965 [Source]
I have an idea of why that may be. By the end of 1964 The Rolling Stones had established themselves as a dominant force in British music. Blues guitar standout Eric Clapton and his band The Yardbirds were making a name for themselves with a "heavier", rawer style of pop music, their seminal "For Your Love" was also released this month (more on that on a future edition). The world of British pop music was beginning to cycle in a gravitationally challenged direction. The Zombies, as high quality as their album was, represented old news. Those early Beatles, Gerry & The Pacemakers and Dave Clark Five sounds were so last year's scene.
For one shining, brilliant moment the rough and ready Pretty Things were on the cutting edge.
But they would never enjoy the same level of chart success in their careers again. Unlike most of their early peers however, they're still going. It was only two years ago that they appeared at the massive Roadburn Festival. Listen to the album above and re-discover why buzz remains so high for this band 50 years on.
But after devouring the Fantastic Four and Pretty Things it was time for some real gone retinal input, it was time for Die, Die My Darling.
I know the title from the Metallica song, which was a cover of a Misfits song, which was taken from this movie. Actually, the film was originally titled Fanatic in the UK, but given the campier title for the U.S. audience. The film was part of Hammer Films seeming monopoly on British horror of the time (Amicus was only just emerging and Tigon was years away from appearing on the scene). It was directed by Silvio Narizzano and starred Tallulah Bankhead in an unforgettable performance as the fantical Mrs. Trefoile buffeted and abetted by the equally wonderful performance of Stefanie Powers as Patricia Carroll. It also co-stars a young Donald Sutherland (that's two 1965 films in a row co-starring Sutherland, including the Amicus Productions's Dr. Terror's House of Horrors from last month) as the simple-minded Joseph.
In it, Patricia visits the mother of her now deceased former boyfriend (Steven Trefoile) against her current fiancee's wishes. Upon arrival she finds Mrs. Trefoile to be a critical, dogmatic tyrant. Mrs. Trefoile does her best to "correct" Ms. Carroll's behavior because she considers her to be Steven's wife and can't stand the thought of his memory being tainted. When Patricia has finally had enough and decides to leave, Mrs. Trefoile produces a gun and locks her in the attic.
It's an excellent film that captured the zeitgeist of the times swiftly a-changing and inter-generational tension, although it can be a tad preachy in its own right. You can watch it in all its over-zealous glory below:
MARVEL TEAM-UP #150 (Marvel Comics)
"Tis Better to Give!"
By Louise Simonson (w); Greg LaRocque (p); Mike Esposito (i); Janice Chiang (l); Bob Sharen (c) & Danny Fingeroth (e)
This is the tear-soaked final issue of what had been a staple at Marvel Comics for well over a decade. The Spider-Man featured team-up book where every month the editors would trot out another slumping or rising hero in an effort to boost sales company-wide. I never understood their appeal as a child, but I could see why Marvel Team-Up and it's The Thing featured companion, Marvel Two-In-One could inspire some of the nostalgia I see today. It being the final issue it feels like Marvel wanted to let the world know what it was potentially missing out on by teaming Spidey with the X-Men. Either that or it was one last ditch attempt at a re-coup. Were the X-Men popular in 1985? I don't know what it was like where you lived but I couldn't find an X-Men comic on shelves during the 80's and early 90's outside of comics specialty shops, they were sold out everywhere.
The story kicks off with Spidey/Peter Parker in another of his endless awkward situations of flirting with girls while trying to maintain his secret identity. The gaiety is eventually interrupted when Juggernaut drops in to town, from a plane, without a parachute, to retrieve a second gem of the Cyttorak (that thing what gives him his power) to give to his buddy Black Tom Cassidy. Black Tom then gains the same powers as Juggernaut (invulnerability, super-strength) but is unhappy with how the power changes him. The two brawl in the streets causing millions of dollars in property damage which was par for the course in 1980's Marvel Manhattan. Spidey's there to snap pictures and get beat on until he points his eyes toward the heavens and shouts "DEUS EX MACHINA!" and the X-Men show up to save the day. Okay, he doesn't actually shout that, but that's basically what happens. The series ends when Petey discovers he's sent the wrong photos to the Daily Bugle, sending the creep stalker pics he took of his attractive young roof-dwelling sunbathing neighbors. But it ends well with approval from his editor Robbie Robertson. If nothing else, it is kind of funny to see a dejected Spidey sulking away in the upper left hand info box on the cover.
This series had some highlights (the short Chris Claremont / John Byrne creative run for one thing), but was mostly for the dogs. Many of the stories simply fell flat, or seemed inconsequential, not the least of which was a Spider-Man team-up with the cast of Saturday Night Live. Mostly, the title was a showcase for emerging artists but was usually the home of the company's least inspired writing. This issue marked the end of an era, however. Marvel Comics has tried repeatedly to revive the team-up format in the ensuing 30 years with little success.
WHAT ELSE WERE THE KIDS UP TO BACK THEN?
After reading their translated copy of Marvel Team-Up #150, the cooler kids among the Italian youth of 1985 probably went out to the local record shop and snagged themselves a copy of this unheralded gem:
BLACK HOLE - LAND OF MYSTERY
It's only thanks to the good people at Shadow Kingdom Records that I am able to accurately cast my mind back to 1985 Italy and know what record the youth of that time would have devoured. This totally obscure album was re-issued by SKR on CD in late 2011, the original, 7-song 'Land of Mystery' album re-packaged with the band's fifth independently issued demo from later in 1985. You can purchase and download it at this location.
The album was recorded in May & June of 1985 but since nobody remembers the actual release date I'm using poetic license in this post about February 1985 and anyway, I couldn't find a better album from that month of that year, so here we are.
This highly atmospheric album is a doom metal classic. Near as anyone can figure, Black Hole was the first band to combine horror film soundtrack moods with heavy metal. The result is a stunning record full of synthesizer organ and heavy guitars. Robert Measles's vocals are sung in English but he has a thick Italian accent, reminding me of early Doomraiser albums.
If the title track "Land of Mystery" doesn't automatically transport you mentally to a dew shrouded graveyard, your ears are broken. Not since Black Sabbath's eponymous debut had record buyers fell into such a dark, heavy abyss. I talk a lot about horror music on this page, or at least I try to, this album is one of the transcendent examples of the form.
After 'Land of Mystery' was released by Bologna Rock Records, the band would split up. Black Hole also released three demos in 1985, but it's hard to tell which came first, this record or the demos because there are no release dates. Anyway, the band would reconvene and record a second full length record in 1988-89 but that album did not surface until Andromeda Relix Records released it on CD as 'Living Mask' in 2000 (it was also issued for the first time on vinyl just last year by Jolly Roger Records). By that time the band was ten years gone and their place in doom metal history as a shadowy relic was firmly entrenched.
But after thoroughly frightening themselves with the final issue of Marvel Team-Up and being only slightly less disturbed by Black Hole's album, I'm sure the coolest among Italian youth needed a break from all the darkness and so decided to go the local movie house to see the new Terry Gilliam film, Brazil.
It's a weird mash-up of re-imagining George Orwell's 1984 with Mad Max set in an office building imagery. A (hilarious) dream of flying turned bureaucratic nightmare, Brazil is one of the most singular visions in movie history, which cemented Gilliam's place in Hollywood as an a-list creative genius, but a z-list commercial failure. Brazil stars Jonathan Pryce, Robert De Niro, Kim Greist, Michael Palin, Katherine Helmond, Bob Hoskins, and Ian Holm. Watch the trailer below:
STRANGE TALES #178 (Marvel Comics)
"Who is Adam Warlock?"
By Jim Starlin (w,a,c); Annette Kawecki (l) & Len Wein (e)
This is the issue that began one of the great creative runs in comics history. The ideas introduced in this short-lived series continue to reverberate to this day, into the Marvel film universe.
Jim Starlin is one of the greatest comics creators and this is him at the peak of his abilities, one quick thumbing through this issue will show you. The abilities of this master storyteller go beyond the linework and are woven deep into the story.
The story kicks off with a four page recap of Adam Warlock's history. I love these history lessons, Marvel used to do these all the time. In a time before comic shops and relative availability of back issues, this was the only way to find out who was who and what was what when picking up a new title for the first time. For a storyteller with limited space to work with, they are a nightmare and I can see why the concept fell largely into dis-use.
But to borrow a page from old Marvel's playbook ... Adam Warlock was originally known as Him when he was introduced in the pages of Fantastic Four in 1967. He's a synthetic man with the powers of a God, a man created by man in the image of God. Even today this is high-concept stuff, for a 1967 comic book it's miraculously rich. He spent most of his life in a cocoon pondering his own existence but would bust out for the odd guest battle with Thor or Hulk. In the early 70's he was taken out of his protective cocoon for good and given his own series, first in the newborn Marvel Premiere showcase series and then, after two issues there, in his own series, The Power of Warlock. In Marvel Premiere he was re-christened Adam Warlock and became the messiah of the newly created Counter-Earth.
Themes of evolution and religion and questions about the inherent good or evil of humanity abound in the first 10 issues of Premiere and Warlock, but the series couldn't truly live up to its own ambitions and was cancelled after Warlock #8. After lying dormant for nearly a year and a half, the character was revived with this issue.
After the recap, the story opens with Warlock stumbling upon a young woman being pursued by hunters on a barren rock in the middle of outer space. Although confused, his good nature kicks in and he proceeds to protect her from her pursuers. But too late. She is ultimately shot by a ray gun and killed and the murderers flee. But not even death can stop Adam Warlock. He re-animates her body with the use of the soul-gem embedded in his forehead and her corpse tells him that her attackers represent the Universal Church of Truth which is run by a being called Magus. Warlock - Magus, see the connection? I don't want to spoil what today isn't much of a surprise but when Adam undertakes his quest to bring down the Universal Church of Truth he discovers that his greatest enemy is himself.
Necromancy, soul-vampirism, party-loving trolls, Thanos and the first appearance of the Guardians of the Galaxy star Gamora, this series has it all. The series is essentially about an innocent soul who slowly loses himself in a ruthless universe and hurts those around him due to that innocence. In short, it's a psychedelic nightmare. A deep exploration of inner space set within the far reaches of outer space.
Jim Starlin pushed the vampirism angle thoroughly, first redesigning Warlock's costume to give him a slightly more Draculean look and even inking his teeth on front covers to create the illusion of fangs. After four issues in Strange Tales the series was moved to a newly revived Warlock #9 (cover date: October 1975). Sadly, the series would only survive until issue #15 and has never been revived.
The character would endure a meaningful and relatively long-lasting death by comics standards in the pages of an Avengers annual (#7). He would return as a manifestation of his own soul gem to destroy Thanos in the second part of the story which appeared in a Marvel Two-In-One annual (#2, both from late 1977). The entire Warlock run from Strange Tales, Warlock magazine and the two Marvel annuals was written and drawn by Jim Starlin with help from various artists not the least of whom was Steve Leialoha.
The character would eventually be re-born a second time, again by Starlin in the pages of his 6-issue epic Infinity Gauntlet. He became the leader of a group of cosmic adventurers The Infinity Watch whose own title ran for over 40 issues in the 1990's. He was one of the original members of the new version of the Guardians of the Galaxy, the one the film of the same name is based on, but did not appear in the film.
If you have even a passing interest in older comics and you haven't read Jim Starlin's Warlock epic then I'd put this onto your MUST READ list without delay. When I first heard Adam Warlock wasn't going to be in the Guardians of the Galaxy movie, I was annoyed, but now I'm glad he wasn't used because the filmmakers likely would have fumbled this character badly. He is a synthetic man with the power of a god, one of the most underrated characters in the Marvel universe, and until vampirism came to the forefront he had that wicked-sexy Gil Kane designed costume, to boot (see cover). Really, he deserves his own movie and Jim Starlin should get first crack at screenplay.
WHAT ELSE WERE THE KIDS UP TO BACK THEN?
After smoking a joint, reading this issue and having a good snicker, the disaffected youth of America no doubt hit the record shop at the local mall and spun this little record:
LED ZEPPELIN - PHYSICAL GRAFFITI
Led Zeppelin's 'Physical Graffiti', it's still my favorite Zeppelin album. My parents had two Zeppelin tapes in the car when I was a kid, 'Zeppelin II' and 'Physical Graffiti'. If memory serves the originally double-LP 'Physical Graffiti' tape contained both albums on a single cassette. Zeppelin 'II' had a lot of good rocking songs but it was just too bluesy for my adolescent tastes. I couldn't stand the blues back then, I thought it all sounded the same. Times change, tastes change, but not my love for this album.
While red-eyed, cotton-mouthed, mind-blown and ear-numbed after a deadly combination of joint smokin', Warlock readin' and Zeppelin listenin' the long-haired, denim clad youth of America's next hot spot was the movie theater where, back in February 1975, they were almost certain to have watched The Stepford Wives. The all-too current issues science fiction thriller directed by Bryan Forbes and starring Katharine Ross, Paula Prentiss, Peter Masterson, Nanette Newman and Tina Louise.
The film was based on the Ira Levin novel of the same name and was heavy with relevant feminist themes. At times it was horrific, but maintained the sensibilities of a black comedy. You can watch it in full, right here, right now. Enjoy and thanks for reading!
"The Origin of the Mandarin"
By Stan Lee (w, e); Don Heck (p); Dick Ayers (i) & Sam Rosen (l)
Before he became a cinematic punching bag played by Ben Kingsley (wha..?), the Mandarin was Iron Man's deadliest foe. A petty tyrant without title, a descendant of Genghis Khan who stumbled upon ten rings of terrible power. This is the story that tells how the Mandarin found those rings and helped to establish the buck-toothed (as drawn by Don Heck) post-WWII Asian stereotype as one of the top shelf villains in the nascent Marvel universe.
Stan Lee, in one of his famous and wonderful asides on the story's splashpage (in the Mighty Marvel Manner!) wrote: "Note: This tale was specially produced by mighty Marvel in answer to more than 500 requests for Mandy's origin!" Lee, Heck and company delivered and then some. Raised as a peasant, though of noble blood the young Mandarin travels to the dreaded Valley of Spirits against the dire warnings of his fellow peasants. His arrogance is already in fine form at such a young age: "Ignorant peasant! Know you that the Mandarin fears nothing!" There he finds the fossilized remains of an ancient dragon.
Startled, the Mandarin falls into a thickly forested valley where he discovers an awesome secret. It turns out the dragon wasn't a dragon at all, but Axon-Karr a Makluan who came to earth centuries ago in a spaceship. Mandy discovers the ship was fueled by ... ten powerful and conveniently human sized rings. He quickly dons the rings and proceeds to conquer the peasantry in his village.
Stan Lee displays his unceasing sense of fun by pointing out the obvious when Iron Man says to himself: "First, there's the problem of finding that imitation Fu Manchu!" and then two panels later, "that's one of the hazards of being a lone-wolf type of adventurer! After a while, you begin to talk to yourself!"
Stan Lee states it plainly: The Mandarin was the "yellow peril" embodied in a petty tyrant using advanced and unfamiliar technology to subjugate a complacent populace. This fear was borne of the cold war, the fear that foreign powers may surpass American weapons advancements secretly and under cover of iron curtained darkness to use them in a sneak attack.
It was a fear the British had felt some 50 years earlier and immortalized by British pulp author Sax Rhomer in the form of the insidious Dr. Fu Manchu. It's no coincidence that The Mandarin was invented and popularized at a time when the character of Fu Manchu was experiencing a resurgence in popularity of his own. In August of 1965 Hallam Productions (UK) and Constantin Film (DE) would release The Face of Fu Manchu, directed by Don Sharp and starring the immortal Christopher Lee in the titular role. The film was a mild success, but enough of one to spawn four sequels.
"Break-Out in Cell Block 10!"
By Stan Lee (w, e); Jack Kirby (p); Chic Stone (i) & Artie Simek (l)
In the second story, Captain America goes back in time to the same plot scenario from issue #60. It seems prolific production doesn't always lead to the most dynamic stories. As in issue #60, Cap thinks he's putting on a demonstration of his battle prowess, in this case for a prison warden. Little does he know he's really battling a cell block full of escaping prisoners, huh-ho!
"By the way," Cap says to the warden, "if I dind't know better, I'd swear these guns had been firing live ammo!"
To his credit, Stan Lee, did make mention of the similarities on the story's splash page: "Remember ish #60 when Cap thought he was giving a physical demonstration and didn't suspect he was really fighting a bunch of assassins? Well, some guys always learn the hard way!" If nothing else, it's proof of Stan Lee's method of writing during the "Marvel Age", that is, let the artist do all the work. If and when Lee caught them repeating themselves, point it out! With Lee's wry sense of observation, he could always make it look like the House of Ideas knew what it was doing. Really, Kirby was just drawing page after page of brawling because that's what he felt like doing. Stan Lee was famous for submitting plots to his artists that consisted of a single sentence on a post-it note: "Spider-Man fights Electro". It was up to Kirby or Steve Ditko or Don Heck to create not just the pacing and layout but also the plot itself. Kirby and Ditko mastered the technique in seemingly never-ending epics that would stretch for a year or longer. In this early Captain America story (just the third solo segment starring the Star Spangled Avenger), Kirby's just enjoying himself and getting his legs under him. Just four issues later, he would re-introduce his own creation from the Golden Age, the Red Skull and his new weapon, the Cosmic Cube. Fans of the Marvel film universe will be familiar with this, no doubt.
WHAT ELSE WERE THE KIDS UP TO BACK THEN?
After reading this issue and having a good snicker, the comics loving youth of England no doubt hit up the local record store and noticed this long-playing gem:
THE ZOMBIES - BEGIN HERE
Representing the harder edge of the wimpier side of the British Invasion, there was a brief period that The Zombies enjoyed sustained chart action. This album was released at the crest of their wave. With "Tell Her No" spinning incessantly on pop radio and reaching #6 on the Billboard chart, Decca Records released The Zombies debut full-length album titled 'Begin Here'. Ironically, this was the beginning of the end for the group.
The album didn't fare as well as expected, hitting only #39 on Billboard's album charts, this at a time when 7" singles dominated record sales and albums were still seen as something of an overpriced novelty. It didn't register at all on the charts back home in the UK. There no telling today why that was. It's a great record, surprisingly tough in places for the normally silky-smooth quintet, while maintaining their signature pop sound. Essentially it gave record buying audiences what they might have come to expect by then: a mixed bag of cover songs and group compositions but it provides a solid listen from needle drop to run-off groove. Considering what the band and label might have expected given their success in the singles market, the album was a colossal flop.
The Zombies trucked on, releasing 10 more singles at home and abroad over the next two and a half years. All of them flopped, only one, "I Want You Back Again" charted at #95 on Billboard. It was the first single release after the album and it was the last time the record buying public at large was caught thinking about them. The band broke up in late 1967.
But that's not the end of the story.
True to their name, The Zombies had a second life when new label CBS Records posthumously released their second and final album, 'Odessey & Oracle', It's one of my all-time favorites, I recommend anybody with just an inkling for 1960's pop records should drop what they're doing and go listen to it. Anyway, The Zombies hadn't been a thing for over a year, but that didn't stop their newly released single "Time of the Season" from rising, and rising, and rising in the charts all the way to #3, making it the second biggest hit single of their careers after "She's Not There" which was famously covered by the band Santana in the 1970's. [Sharp intake of breath] So in Spring of 1969 the band re-formed and released two more singles. Both of them flopped. The group disbanded and some of the members formed the progressively inclined Argent, who you might remember from the song, "Hold Your Head Up".
But in spite of all that, The Zombies's legacy is intact. "Time of the Season" is a classic, highly regarded in a wide-range of music circles, from classic rock fans to DJs, one of whom recently sampled the memorable bassline to score a hit pop single. The fact that the band's name so closely resembles the shape of their careers is skin-crawlingly eerie to me.
So, after the youth of Britain were finished devouring the latest imported issue of Tales of Suspense and utterly ignoring The Zombies new record, they found time to hit the cinema where they surely watched Amicus Productions'sDr. Terror's House of Horroranthology film. And you can too, right here, right now. Enjoy and thanks for reading:
PS: don't mind the subtitles, the film is in English. It was directed by Freddie Francis and stars Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing. You can find out more about it at this location.
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