Monday, 14 July 2014

THE THING IS BIG BEN COVER & IMAGE GALLERY - PART ONE...

Images copyright MARVEL COMICS

It lasted a mere 18 issues before being merged with SPIDER-MAN #595 (a U.K. weekly), but way back in 1984, The THING Is BIG BEN hit the shelves of newsagents across Britain.  The main Thing stories were taken from MARVEL TWO-In-ONE, and back-up strips came in the form of IRON MAN and CAPTAIN AMERICA - plus the zany DONALD DOGFLY by the talented HUNT EMERSON.

To be honest, Donald was probably the best strip in the mag, and it's a shame it only appeared in the first dozen issues before being consigned to comic strip limbo.  Time for a comeback I think - where are you, Donald?  While I'm waiting for him to reply, the rest of you can get on with appreciating all the lovely piccies I've generously bestowed upon you.  Don't forget to return for the second instalment.

(Incidentally, I've still got the free gifts which came with the first two issues [none in the third], but can I remember where on earth I've stashed them?  [The answer's no, in case you were wondering.]  Whenever I find them, I'll add them to this post - but that could be a long time.)    












UPDATE: Here's the free gift from #1 - I'll add the one from #2 when I dig it out.

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5 comments:

  1. Anonymous14 July 2014 at 22:27

    Poor Marvel UK - how could they be reduced to printing this tripe. Was this really the same company that produced MWOM, SMCW, POTA, the Titans and the Complete FF - the golden age for the weeklies ended with the final issues of MWOM and Super Spider-Man in January 1979 and then it was all downhill. It was despair at the new-look weeklies that caused me to switch permanently to U.S. imports.

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  2. Kid14 July 2014 at 22:47

    Let's give them points for trying, CJ. The fact is, the material they were printing in these later mags just didn't have the magic of the earlier stories.

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  3. Unknown14 July 2014 at 23:19

    I liked the US Marvel "Two in one" comic but I don't think the strips were strong enough for a UK weekly possibly with FF back up to round it off (then again tha might confuse readers with the Thing in some FF stories etc) - I suppose the "Big Ben" title was to make it sound more London/British - wasn't aware Hunt Emerson did anything for Marvel as always nice artwork from the lad

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  4. John Pitt15 July 2014 at 14:01

    I preferred the 2-in-1 stories to the Thing solo stories, especially around the "project pegasus" era. As for this comic - one of the last decent Marvel weeklies, shortly before a time when the only weekly titles they put out were licensed titles- bleak years for Marvel UK. As for the title - well Dez Skinn had Big Ben- the man with no time for crime in Warrior just before, so draw your own conclusions....

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  5. Kid15 July 2014 at 14:49

    I'd say the name was more to do with giving the comic a 'British' identity, JP, rather than cashing in on a rather obscure character aimed at a different age group. However, could it also have been used to take a little pop at Dez? Who knows!

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