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| Copyright MARVEL COMICS |
Special Marvel Edition was a comic which lasted for 16 issues from 1971 to 1974. The first four issues featured The Mighty Thor, the next ten starred Sgt. Fury, and the final two introduced The Hands Of Shang-Chi, Master Of Kung Fu. I bought #2 as a back issue at the start of the '80s, #1 circa the mid-'80s (I think), and #s 3 & 4 only recently. I've also got #15, purchased around 15 years or more ago (from the late Pete Root when he rented space in other premises in Buchanan Street in Glasgow), so that's only five issues in all. (Update: Now six, as I acquired #16 since first publishing this post.)
However, it's the Thor issues I'm mainly interested in today, as it's good to finally have all four 53 years after they first appeared, and around 43/44 years after I first acquired #2. Incidentally, neither 1 or 2 are replacements, both of them are the original issues from when I first bought them - as are 3 & 4, though I've only had them for a few days. I've shown the first two on the blog before, but thought it would be a good idea to feature all four together so that you Crivs can view them as the 'family' unit they are. (I've also now added them to some previous Thor cover posts so you'll see them there as well.)
Thought, theories, observations, and speculations about the comics welcome, as are imaginative, creative, inventive, and fanciful comments and insults about my good self. Get cracking.
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| On ODIN's helmet, the left horn isn't symmetrical with the right and extends further - almost in alignment with the contours of THOR's body. Such artistic errors were common with KIRBY |
10 comments:
In my childhood I didn't mind that the Asgardians spoke as if they were in a Shakespeare play but nowadays I find such dialogue to be ridiculously pompous and unreadable. It's totally illogical too - surely they'd all speak in Old Norse.
But would they I wonder? They were deities to the Norsemen sure enough, but did that mean they themselves would speak Norse? And if Thor and his cronies spoke Norse in the comics, CJ, how would you understand them? Artistic license is the thing to remember - otherwise comics would be so logical, they'd be boring (or not exist at all).
Great post featuring early 1970's Marvel reprints,fantastic time to be growing up and reading comics.Loved those 4 king size Kirby reprints and this was just at the start of my attempt to figure out the giant Marvel jigsaw puzzle which included current issues from USA,back issues,British Marvel reprints,Alan Class comics,Christmas annuals,Fantastic and Terrific comics from the 1960's etc.So many stories to keep up with or discover and yet now 50 years later I have read them all!!!Fond memories of those Thor comics which I loved and I never noticed that they spoke in a Shakesparian manner..it seemed totally appropriate to me and still does.Fond and happy memories.Always a pleasure to catch up with you Kid and hope you are well.Pete was a friend of mine and he visited us in Belfast and kindly put us up when we visited Glasgow.Real nice guy.Stay well my friend.
Hi, Triple F, good to hear from you (and all Crivvies). I'd have to check to be sure, but I've a feeling that some of those SME Thor Tales were also reprinted in a few of the Thor King Size Specials/Annuals - could be wrong though. Pete was a character, wasn't he?! Pretended to be a crusty old curmudgeon, but it was just an act. Stay safe, FFF.
I suppose Stan Lee chose "Shakespearean" dialogue because it sounded noble and fitting for Asgardian gods.
That's pretty much the reason he claimed for doing so, CJ. He thought 'gods' wouldn't speak like ordinary people.
These are sweet comics. This was from the era when Marvel was printing more Kirby stuff than DC despite Kirby working for them, because they unleashed so many reprints. These Thor stories are great!
Indeed, RJ, contains some of the best Lee/Kirby Thor stuff ever produced. Thor versus Hercules - wow!
I've never read any of them, Kid - in fact, don't remember seeing them at all on the stands in 1971-74 down Pompey way. But the T&P import stamp does not lie. I'll keep an eye out for them. I loved those 25 cent square-bound comics from Marvel, as well as the 80-page Giants from DC. There was something really special about the heft of those comics when you settled down to read them.
I can't recall whether I ever saw any of them at the time either, B, but I'm fairly sure I never had any until I bought them as back issues years (and in some cases decades) later. I think I might've seen the cover of the first one in an ad though, 'cos it seems familiar to me. I loved those 'big' issues as well, but #4 came at a time when Marvel's 'King-Size' titles were around 48 pages instead of 68. Still a great comic!
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