JOHN BYRNE'S 'BACK To BASICS' FANTASTIC FOUR COVER GALLERY - PART ONE...

Images copyright MARVEL COMICS

When JOHN BYRNE took over The FANTASTIC FOUR as writer and artist in 1981, he gave the title a much-needed shot in the arm.  Arguably, not since the days of LEE & KIRBY had the mag been as entertaining and exciting as it became under the stewardship of the little lad from Great Britain.  He did two things that I liked immediately: He reintroduced the thick black collars on the FF's costumes and made REED RICHARDS a skinny-looking guy again, as he had first appeared in the early issues back in the '60s.

Another thing (no pun intended) I loved was when he returned BEN GRIMM's epidermis to its pre-evolved dinosaur-type hide look, though I wish the change had been permanent rather than just for a few issues.  One change I wasn't keen on though, was when The Byrnester played cupid for ALICIA MASTERS and JOHNNY STORM, so I was glad when that was later shown not to be what it appeared by a subsequent creative team.

All good things come to an end, alas, and it was the same for John Byrne's sixty-two and a bit issue run on The Fantastic Four (not including Annuals or Specials).  He moved over to DC COMICS to play in their sandpit for a while, reshaping their top hero, SUPERMAN - but what a legacy he left at MARVEL.  I'm fortunate enough to have a complete set of the original issues of JB's unbroken run on the title, plus the deluxe, two-volume OMNIBUS collections of his classic contributions to the legend of Marvel's first family. 

Starting right now is Part One of a series, showcasing the covers of John Byrne's Fantastic Four.  Remember to return for future instalments - I'd hate for you to miss them!

First Byrne FF I ever bought, from Glasgow's Virgin Megastore.  Purchased the previous
two issues by mail order around a few months later because I enjoyed this one so much

I missed this issue when it first went on sale, but obtained it by mail order from Dave Hern's
Wonderworld Comics in Bournemouth a couple of months or so later.  This is a classic tale,
but it's a shame that JACK KIRBY's image was removed from the cover before publication

Read this on the train home from Glasgow and was ecstatic at the return of the 'original' Thing

Ah, Susan!  Be still, my beating heart

Yay!  The way 'things' used to be

I recall me and a pal sitting in The Blue Lagoon restaurant in Glasgow one Saturday afternoon,
each eating a Fish & Chips tea as I carefully perused this still pristine ish.  Happy memories!

Blue Lagoon for this one as well.  Perhaps I bought both issues on the same day,
though I visited the place regularly so it could've been on a subsequent occasion

Bought in local newsagent's of a former neighbourhood on Sunday, March 21st 1982.  A classic!

TOYBOX TREASURES Of The PAST: OL' PALOMINO PAL O' MINE...

Howdy, pardners!  Lemme tell ya the story of the old West - JOHNNY WEST, that is!  Or to be more precise, his trusty horse THUNDERBOLT.  The Palomino you see in the photograph is the very one I've had since I was 9 or 10 years old, and here's how it came into my possession.  In a previous post, I mentioned one of my boyhood friends, JOHN FIDLER, who was ROBIN to my BATMAN whenever we played at caped crusaders in the street where we lived.  (Just as well his nickname wasn't 'Kid' or he'd have had a hard life, eh?)  Well, one afternoon, around '68 or '69, John was in my back garden when his eyes fell upon a big battered tin truck my father had brought home one day, having found it abandoned in a ditch.

For some curious reason it was love at first sight for John in regard to that truck, and he immediately offered to swap Johnny West's Palomino for it.  Naturally enough, being an animal lover, I instantly agreed to his very generous offer.  (Not without a nagging sense of doubt it has to be said, as I'd got the truck for nothing while John's parents had paid good hard cash for ol' Thunderbolt.)  For a while I expected him to renege on the swap and demand his steed back, but he never did and I've had it ever since.

One day, while in my bedroom, a corner of Thunderbolt's left ear suddenly popped off and fell onto the new carpet.  I retrieved it at once and glued it back in place, and that's probably the reason why the smell of that carpet fills my nostrils nowadays whenever I gaze upon my plastic Palomino pal.  Curiously, 20-odd years later, I acquired a second horse and was surprised to see that it was missing a piece of the same ear - of the exact same size and shape I'd glued back on its twin.  Both pieces would've looked identical in every respect, and I can only conclude that there must've been at least one batch of horses which suffered from a weak spot in the same place, prone to popping off at any moment.  (I repaired the other ear in case you were wondering, and the fix is virtually undetectable.)

I didn't obtain Johnny West or CHIEF CHEROKEE until sometime in the late '80s, though Johnny was missing his hands and Chiefy had only one.  Luckily, a company called DAPOL had issued a limited run of their own versions of the duo (from the original moulds), and, as well as purchasing both sets, I also acquired spare hands and accessories so I could tart up and complete the original LOUIS MARX TOYS figures and horses.

So, I've now had ol' Johnny for around 25 years or so, and his faithful steed for around 45.  Before Johnny reclaimed his equine pal, an '80s ACTION MAN used to sit astride his back, but I later bought another Thunderbolt (complete with box and accessories) for PALITOY's most famous son to ride the range.  After all, I couldn't leave him bereft of a horse to get around on.

Now, hands up if you want to see Chief Cherokee.