MIGHTY MARVEL CHECKLIST - COLLECTORS' EDITIONS ON SALE NOW!

ESSENTIAL X-MEN #18

Copyright MARVEL COMICS.  Published by PANINI

76 pages of Mutant Mayhem!

Colossus falls into the clutches of Lydia Nance and the Alpha Sentinel – and they have dark plans for the Russian mutant!

Featuring material first printed in X-Men: Gold #24-27.

On sale NOW!

£4.99.

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MIGHTY WORLD OF MARVEL #19

76 pages of Marvel Universe adventure!

'The Infinity Wars' saga continues!  Warlock and the Silver Surfer have Ultron on the run, but Thanos is about to join the game!  Dr Strange gets a visit from the Black Widow!  The Guardians of the Galaxy are torn apart!

Featuring material first printed in Infinity Countdown #4-5 and Infinity Wars Prime #1.

On sale NOW!

£4.99.

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DEADPOOL UNLEASHED #4

76 pages of Marvel’s hottest hero!

Deadpool teams up with Jessica Jones, then faces the mysterious vigilante called Good Night!

Also: the next level of our crazy interactive game 'You Are Deadpool'!

Featuring material first printed in Deadpool #9-10 and You Are Deadpool #4.

On sale NOW!

£4.99.

BATMAN #232 FACSIMILE EDITION...

Copyright DC COMICS

I guess MARVEL's Facsimile Editions have proven popular, because now DC COMICS have gotten in on the act with the first release of their own series of classic reprints.  As with the Marvel ones, all the original ads are included, and, best of all, the entire contents are printed on non-shiny paper, more reminiscent of the way comics were done back in the day.

One slight niggle is that the reproduction quality of the ads doesn't seem quite so sharp as in the Marvel issues (it's not terrible though), but the story pages themselves are crystal clear and rich in colour.  So grab a slice of the past and buy this issue as soon as you can.  It's far less expensive than an original copy.

SPECTACULAR SPLASH PAGES #22...

Copyright MARVEL COMICS

Back between 1972 and '74, me and a couple of pals used to clamber over the roof of an ancient pub in the Old Village quarter of our town (usually at night, but not always).  Joined onto one end of the pub was an old building, of which only one upstairs room (or maybe two) was used by a dentist.  If memory serves, the dentist's place aside, the rest of the building had bare floorboards and stairs, and gave the impression of being quite dilapidated.  And just how did I know this?  I once climbed up the side of the wall and clambered in through the open window of the upstairs toilet and explored the place a little.  Fearless, me!  

So when I first saw the above splash page in b&w in the pages of MARVEL UK's AVENGERS weekly, it reminded me of the interiors of that very building, and that's always the place I think of whenever I see this image of The Mighty Avengers (and irritating 'groupie' RICK JONES) striding through the run-down, rubble-strewn room. See? Association is a powerful thing. However, it's not just my personal memories that inspire my appreciation of the piece, but the fact that it's a neatly-composed picture that causes quite a splash.  Hey, maybe that's why it's called a splash page, eh?

And, in case you were wondering, the old building was eventually refurbished (many years ago, in fact) and is once more a residential abode.  However, below is a photo taken in the late '70s or very early '80s of the window (after it had been boarded up) where I gained access back in 1972 or '73.  Ah, memories!

And there's more!  (This blog is like a movie - you should never leave until the end credits are over.)  Below is the recoloured version used as a variant cover on Avengers #672.  I think it's a beezer - how about you?