T.H.U.N.D.E.R. AGENTS REVISITED...

Images copyright relevant owner

Many moons back, long before the actual event came about, I was firmly of the opinion that JERRY ORDWAY would be the most obvious choice of artist on WALLY WOOD's T.H.U.N.D.E.R. AGENTS should the characters ever be revived.  His style had always reminded me of Wally's so it was a natural conclusion to make as far as I was concerned - and, luckily, DAVID M. SINGER was of the same opinion.

In 1984, DELUXE COMICS secured the superlative services of Jerry (as well as those of GEORGE PEREZ, MURPHY ANDERSON, DAVE COCKRUM, STEVE DITKO and others) for their new series of the TOWER COMICS classic characters, before the title fell foul of copyright problems and suspended publication.  As far as I can discern, there were only five issues, so here is a selection of covers and interior pages by various artists to whet your appetite.

Click here for Part Two!

SUPER SUNDAY SPECIAL SELECTION: JOHNNY FUTURE - PART EIGHT...

Copyright REBELLION

Important Notice:

Remember, all you faithful followers and frantic fans of fabulous FANTASTIC's fearsome fighter of feckless foes (that's JOHNNY FUTURE, in case you'd forgotten) - there are only three further epic episodes of this superb superhero strip from the sensational '60s to go before we finally finish our nostalgic journey through the complete run of awesomely illustrated (by LUIS BERMEJO) comic strip adventures of Britain's very own Man of Tomorrow!  (Who I rather ingeniously speculated could possibly be SUPERMANs father in part two of this cataclysmic and classic confrontation.)

  

So - don't miss 'em!

The SUB-MARINER - In TRIPLICATE...

Images copyright MARVEL COMICS

Staying with Subby, let's now take a quick look at an earlier, 1968 issue of his own mag, plus a couple of reprints.  Above is the original cover of PRINCE NAMOR, The SUB-MARINER #8, in which ol' wing-feet goes toe-to-toe with bashful BEN GRIMM, The THING.  Below is the eighth issue of volume two of TALES To ASTONISH, in which the original black background has been replaced with a green one.  (And the interior tale is abridged by a couple of pages.)

Next up (below) is a 1994 second printing of the first version, the interiors of which were reproduced from the '68 negs and are actually clearer and brighter than the original.  It has new ads, but, that apart, is a faithful facsimile of the first printing, including the indicia, Bullpen Bulletins and letters pages.  The cover is obviously sourced from a stat of the original art, taken before the highlights around Namor's outline (to make him stand out better from the black background) were added. 

Note also that the figures in covers two and three have motion lines around them which the first one lacks, showing that they were removed before it was sent to the printers.  Isn't it interesting to see all the little revisions that covers go through in the stages leading up to the published result?

"BURN, NAMOR... BURN!" FAVOURITE COMICS Of The PAST - PART TWENTY-SEVEN...

Copyright MARVEL COMICS

The sky was a bright blue, with cotton wool clouds floating far overhead, when I purchased PRINCE NAMOR, The SUB-MARINER #14 from CORSON'S (a local shop that, at the time of typing, still exists in the same place today) that summer's day in 1969 or '70.  I remember arriving back home and reading it on my front doorstep, so eager was I to plumb its titanic treasures and immerse myself in all its MARVEL-lous delights.  This was the very first Subby comic I ever bought, but, though I enjoyed it, it would be two or three years before I purchased another.  (The first Annual of the series.)

Interestingly, long before I acquired the replacement for #14 you see above, I bought a reprint of it in TALES To ASTONISH #14 from a shop in Southsea or Portsmouth back in '81.  One glance at the cover instantly transported me to the front doorstep of my old home, eleven or twelve years before.  Strange how the same image can conjure up a different set of memories, isn't it?  Nowadays, when I look at the TTA reprint, I think of the street I stayed in Southsea first, before recalling the memory it summoned back then.  Although, when I look at Subby's original issue, my mind jumps straight back to that front doorstep so very long ago.

The reprint, as well as having it's own set of recollections, also points back to earlier memories of the original, which has only its own.  You'd think it would work both ways equally, no?  You know, I'd look at the Sub-Mariner mag and be reminded of the TTA reprint, in the same way that it works in reverse?  But no, the process only operates in one direction.  It's a bit of a mystery - or is it?  Perhaps it's only natural that some things remind us of past memories, but not 'future' ones (if you know what I mean).

However, here's a bona fide mystery: Why on earth do I get so absorbed in pondering such inconsequential matters as if they were profoundly significant in some way?  That's one I'll probably never be able to solve, but at least it keeps my mind occupied.  Anyway, below is the cover to the reprint, the contents of which were recoloured, but followed the colour scheme of the original pretty faithfully. Marvel had increased their comics' page count at this time, so also included are the 'filler' pin-ups from the back of the mag.

  

And here's a side-by-side comparison of the covers: