CRIVENS' CLASSIC COMIC COVERS: FANTASTIC FOUR #126...

Image copyright MARVEL COMICS

I bought my first copy of this comic on October 6th 1972.  It was a Friday, I was off school, and I purchased my second copy of The MIGHTY WORLD Of MARVEL #1 at the very same moment.  Oh, how I wish I could go back in time and relive that momentous day, all of nearly 45 years ago.  Well, in a way I can - whenever I gaze upon this sensational cover of FANTASTIC FOUR #126 by Big JOHN BUSCEMA.  I wish they still produced comics like this today, don't you?  Then leave a comment saying so.

BABE Of The DAY - JENNIFER BEALS...

Did you know that JEN's uncle was a coal miner in Britain?  That's when we had a coal industry that is, which we don't anymore.  "But," you cry, "coal was for heating and electricity, etc., and we've still got them, so we must still have a coal industry!"

No, we still have an energy, or power industry, which does essentially the same thing without actually using British coal, so we don't have a home-grown coal industry any longer.  H'mm, seems I've read a similar 'discussion' fairly recently.  Now if only I could recall where.  Any ideas anybody?

Cheer up, Jen - we'll get around to ogling you in a moment.  Honest.

******

(And no, I don't have the faintest clue what Jennifer's uncle did for a living.)

TROTTERS' INDEPENDENT TRADING 'INDUSTRY'...

To my great amusement, I'm advised that, over on some blog, a self-confessed 'wannabe writer' is still trying to talk up a British comics industry that no longer exists (by misrepresenting the views of those who are of a different opinion), and making specious comparisons to the music, movie and TV industries that yet retain a significant presence in this country.

As I've previously gone to great pains to explain, when I say 'comics industry', I'm referring to published paper periodicals (of either weekly, fortnightly, monthly, or even yearly frequency) containing mainly comic strips, as the word was defined and accepted for decades in the minds of the general public, and as yet defined on Wikipedia and in most dictionaries.  If he could only grasp the difference between the carton and the content, he'd be a less angst-ridden little malcontent.

Books, DVDs, digital platforms, etc., containing comic strip content, are not 'comics' in the traditional sense of the word, but a different (though admittedly related) animal.  When something 'evolves' into something different, it ceases to be that which it was before.  And, when it 'evolves' into something less than it was before, then it's no improvement.  If a giant evolves into a dwarf, he's not a giant anymore, is he?

Anyway, there's no point covering every aspect of this discussion again, as it's practically been done to death.  Here's one important aspect to consider though.  See these self-published and/or digital products that some people tout as proof of today's 'evolved' comics 'industry' ?  Were there really an industry (as I understand the concept), they wouldn't exist, because there'd be little need to go down that particular route.  The existence of such things only serves to prove just what dire straits the so-called industry is really in.

The main difference is, I suppose, that these people view any and all comic strip material as being 'comics' in themselves, and they're entitled to that view.  I, however, see comic strip material as something within a comic (a published paper periodical), and though the word has been and is sometimes used interchangeably, I prefer to draw (npi) a distinction between the carton and the content.  (Like we used to do.)

Anyway, who can blame that other blogger for leaping on the bouncing bandwagon in a new attempt to stir up controversy, thereby attracting attention to his site?  If only he'd avoid being so embarrassingly ingratiating to those whom he thinks might be able to help 'grease the wheels' of his hoped-for comics career in the process, we'd be spared having to witness the sad spectacle of a sickening bit of 'brown-nosing'.  

The INVINCIBLE GENE COLAN...

Images copyright MARVEL COMICS

Here's a great book I acquired only recently.  It's a great book that really should have been even greater, but I'll get to that presently.  If you're a genuine comics fan, you'll know of GENE COLAN.  Gene was a master of light and shade, and one of the finest contributors ever to freelance for Mighty MARVEL.  IRON MAN, SUB-MARINER, DAREDEVIL, HOWARD The DUCK, and DRACULA are just a few of the titles he drew for 'The House Of Ideas' in the '60s & '70s.

There are some great images in this 132 pager, but, alas, also some not-so-great ones.  It's always somewhat disappointing to read what a sublime artist someone is, and then see art which doesn't quite bear that out.  Case in point is the example below.  Nice pencil work, superb texturing, but that apart, it's a dreadful drawing.  The figure is too squat, the head's too big, the body's too small, and the legs aren't right in any way.  And the fact that ol' DOOM's left arm appears to be sprouting from the middle of his torso all result in a less than perfect illustration.  (And the right arm is seriously dodgy as well.  Where exactly does the elbow bend?)

For all the excellent examples of Gene's artistic ability, there's a few I wish they'd just left out, because they don't do his reputation any favours at all.  It's not the first time I've found myself wishing that compilers of books like this had been just a little more discerning in their choices, and, unfortunately, this is another such occasion.  It also suffers from several areas of over-printing, where one caption has been printed on top of another, resulting in something that's practically unreadable.  Don't they have proofreaders any more?

However, it would be remiss of me not to put things in context by mentioning that Gene suffered from glaucoma for many years (being almost blind in one eye and having tunnel vision in the other), and had to draw with his face practically pressed up against the page.  This no doubt explains the instances when his art wasn't at its best, and makes it all the more amazing when it was.  So despite its few shortcomings, this tome should be a welcome addition to the bookshelf of any devoted fan of 'The Dean'.  Published in 2010, it may yet be available.  Try your local comicbook store right away.