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| Images copyright MARVEL COMICS |
"A new beginning" proclaims the cover of ASTONISHING TALES #36, but (alas) 'twas not to be. The comic was cancelled with this ish, and the new beginning ended in MARVEL SPOTLIGHT #33. However, you can't keep a good man down, and LUTHER MANNING (the original Deathlok, there's been at least three more since) popped up as a guest star in various titles 'til his star faded in the Mighty Marvel firmament and he was eventually consigned to reprints in the MASTERWORKS and EPIC volumes.
But don't be downhearted, 'cos we have these cracking covers (Gromit) to remind us of when Deathlok kicked @ss. Got a favourite? Then tell us all about it in the comments section, frantic one! This blog's nothing without you!
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| This would've been AT #37 had the mag not been cancelled - the cover was already prepared, logo and all. Luckily, with a bit of rescheduling and re-titling, it finally got the 'spotlight' it deserved. Ironically, this was also the final issue of MARVEL SPOTLIGHT |
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| Cover production photostat of originally-scheduled mag |
Loved Deathlok! I was an ideal age for that concept when it hit the stands, a grittier sci-fi superhero toting a gun when gun-toting was downright strange outside a western or war comic. Rich Buckler's first few issues of this run are delicious, but that said the story became a bit of a shambles as I realized when I recently read the collected volume. Deathlok was better in my mind than in reality, but still a fantastic idea.
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Yeah, it sort of lost its way after a while, Rip. Like you, I remember it being better than it was, but having said that, I enjoyed the collected edition when I read it recently. There's been talk of doing a movie, but I suppose we'll have to wait and see.
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