GENE COLAN'S CAPTAIN AMERICA #601...

Copyright MARVEL COMICS

I seem to remember reading somewhere that CAPTAIN AMERICA #601 was GENE COLAN's last work for MARVEL - and perhaps (private commissions aside) his last work anywhere.  Apparently it was originally intended as an Annual in 2007, but didn't appear until a couple of years later in this double-size issue of Cap's own regular monthly mag.

The version shown here is the one coloured by DEAN WHITE, and it has to be admitted that the art is very atmospheric.  There's also a black and white variant version printed from Colan's pencils, which I'm still waiting for despite ordering it (from a different seller) within minutes of the colour one on display before you.

Colan won an EISNER Award for this issue, but despite the reviews extolling his art, it isn't really the best thing he's ever done.  Dodgy perspectives, banana fingers, contorted anatomy, and stretched composition are occasionally in evidence, but remember that Colan suffered from poor eyesight so it's almost a miracle that he could even see to draw anything.  And he was also 82 when he produced this ish.

However, like I said, this mag has mood and atmosphere in spades, and no one did those qualities better than Colan.  When the black and white version arrives, I'll post some pages so that you can compare them against White's coloured examples and you can judge for yourself which ones you like best.  In the meantime, feel free to leave a comment saying just what Gene Colan's art means to you.

I'll show you the interiors soon - promise!

COMBINED - PART TWELVE & THIRTEEN Of DON STARR'S APPOINTMENT With FEAR...

Copyright relevant owner

At last!  The gripping conclusion of DON STARR's penultimate adventure from the pages of '60s POWER periodical, the titanic TERRIFIC.  Two episodes for the price of one this time out, Crivs, so you can't accuse me of being mean to you.

Daring Don had only one more adventure to go before he vanished into oblivion, in the exact same week that superhero JOHNNY FUTURE (from sister publication FANTASTIC) also disappeared (aside from one last, pre-produced, full-colour appearance in an Annual).

'Twas no coincidence, because the two comics were merged into one, necessitating the removal of both home-grown strips to leave room for the MARVEL reprints.

Want to see Don's final adventure, Crivvies?  Then let me know. 

THAT'S THE WONDER OF WOOLIES...

One shop which features in the childhood memories of many people of a certain age is undoubtedly WOOLWORTHS.  Which of us can think back to our early days and not see Woolworths loom large in our personal history?  Of course, there will be other shops, some local, some national, that we also hold in great affection, but Woolworths is the 'daddy', isn't it?  Or one of the daddies at least, especially when it came to toys (and PIC 'n' MIX).

To be honest, I wasn't always 100% certain about its name.  I, along with most people I knew, called it Woolworths (or Woolworse was the way I pronounced it as a kid), but it was actually known as F.W. WOOLWORTH & Co. Ltd when I was a boy, only switching to WOOLWORTHS in the early or mid- '80s after a management buyout in the UK.  So whether you called it Woolworth, Woolworth's or Woolworths, you were right at least some of the time.

Amazingly, the British incarnation outlasted the American one (from which it had sprung) by quite a few years, and there has been talk about the name returning to the UK high street a number of times over the last few years, which I for one would love to see.  I suppose HOME BARGAINS is the modern equivalent of 'Woolies', but it would be great to see the original resurrected.

I own a number of goodies bought from Woolworths over the years before its demise, some of which bear the company's name on the packaging.  However, those 'branded' products are mostly generic items made by a variety of manufacturers and were doubtless also available in other stores in different packaging.  Now, though, thanks to the generosity of American reader Terranova47, today I became the proud owner of a MATTEL HOT WHEELS lorry bearing the iconic name of Woolworth on the product itself.

This is an American toy, hence the US version of the name, but hey - whether Woolworth, Woolworth's or Woolworths, it's essentially the same thing.  And remember, Woolworths was actually known as Woolworth in Britain at one time too, prior to the addition of the 's'.

So, many thanks to Terranova47 for reminding me of a much-missed part of my past.  Woolworths may be gone (for the moment), but it'll never be forgotten, regardless of whatever version of its name is the one you remember.

Any fond memories of Woolies that you'd care to share with your fellow Crivs?  Then the comments section awaits your presence.   

VIVA TOBC! The REBELS HAVE COME THROUGH For ME...

Copyright REBELLION

Sometimes something happens that restores your faith in human nature.  Or even 'business' nature for that matter.  REBELLION's TREASURY Of BRITISH COMICS have just sent me a free replacement for The COMPLETE JOHNNY FUTURE volume that every superhero comic strip fan in the world should have, and it's about as perfect as I could wish for.  (My previous copy was slightly damaged.)  Consequently, I'm as happy as a pig in the soft smelly brown stuff.

You all know that I'm quick to point out when some companies don't live up to expectations, but I hope I'm at least just as quick to say when other companies do the right thing - or even better than the right thing as Rebellion have done in this case.  So far I've bought three copies of this book (one from Rebellion, two from AMAZON) in my quest for a pristine copy, meaning I've now spent just over £60 (actually £70 counting postage) on the same tome, but I've been waiting decades for this book and wasn't prepared to accept anything less than near-perfection.

Well, I've now got my almost-perfect copy and I wanted everyone to know what a great service Rebellion provides in rectifying matters when things go wrong.  They now have a fresh supply of this very handsome volume, which can be obtained by clicking on this link.  If you don't have this book, you should have, so order yourself a copy today!  You'll be glad you did.   

BABE Of The DAY - HUDSON LEICK...

HUDSON LEICK smiles like a psycho

in this photo, but what can I say?  My kinda

woman!  Okay, Crivs, here's a simple question

for you.  XENA or CALLISTO - which cutie

rings your bell loudest?  You know where

to leave your answers so fire away.

COMICBOOK CLANGERS - BETWEEN HAMMER And ANVIL...

Copyright MARVEL COMICS

Okay, so here's what happens in the above ish.  Two criminals escape from a prison chain gang, manacled to one another with only a few feet between them.  An alien (in mistaken gratitude for them inadvertently helping him when their intention was the opposite) replaces their chain with what he describes as an 'Energy Synthicon', giving them undreamt of power which the two then use to take on The HULK.

They lose of course, but that's par for the course with ol' Hulkie.  What strikes me though, is the patent absurdity of the whole premise of having two guys 'bonded' together, presumably for life (until Greenskin solves that problem), and unable to go their separate ways.  Maybe it's just me, but I can't help but wonder why LEN WEIN didn't reject the idea when it occurred to him, on the grounds that neither of the two men would be able to go to the toilet on their own, and would have to sleep in close proximity to one another because of their 'Synthicon'.

Take the clothes they're wearing too.  HAMMER's topless, ANVIL wears a shirt, but how will Hammer put on a shirt (if he wants to), and how will Anvil be able to change his?  Things like that bother me - or the adult me anyway, as such details wouldn't have occurred to me when I was a kid or teenager.  Most youngsters wouldn't consider them either, which tends to suggest (not that there was much doubt) that these tales were written mainly for teenagers, not adults.  (I should say, however, that The Hulk's friendship with a character called CRACKAJACK JACKSON is quite touching, and the poignant ending redeems the more absurd aspects of the story to a large extent.)

Anyway, just thought I'd run that by you Crivs and see what your reactions are, if any.  Have I got too much time on my hands that I notice these kind of problems, or do they bug you too (even in a minor way)?  Let loose in the comments section.

AT LAST! TRUE BELIEVERS FINALLY ARRIVE...

Copyright MARVEL COMICS

Lovely stuff!  Six new titanic TRUE BELIEVERS comics arrived this morning, and being the unselfish paragon of genial generosity that I am, I've decided to share the cataclysmic covers with all you crazy Crivs.  There's no point identifying each title individually when you can see which ones they are for yourselves, though I'd like to draw your attention to The AVENGERS issue with CAPTAIN MARVEL on the cracking (and crackling) cover above.

This ish (originally Avengers #89) was previously reprinted as a True Believers mag (smaller image above) around 14 months ago, but with the original masthead (and subtitle) removed and replaced with a far less impressive one.  I've included the cover to remind you, so that you can compare the difference and see how much better the covers are when they're not altered too much.  Hopefully MARVEL will continue on this course with all future issues.

Any, enough waffle from me - enjoy the covers!

FROM THIS - TO THIS... A PICTORIAL TRANSFORMATION...

We're told to recycle all the time these days so, for this post, I thought I'd follow that particular advice and 'recycle' some of the old strips I restored from a rather dilapidated state in order to brighten up the walls they adorned in my room.  I never kept copies of every stage of the restoration process, so the 'before' examples will vary from one strip to another, but the difference will be obvious (I hope).  Every 'To This...' strip you see in this post is the transformed result arrived at from working on the 'From This -' example, not lifted from another source.  Are you all ready?  Then let's go!

FROM THIS -

TO THIS...

******

FROM THIS -

TO THIS...

******

FROM THIS -

TO THIS...

******

FROM THIS -

TO THIS...

TELL 'EM ABOUT THE HONEY, MUMMY...

I've recently been digging through some boxes and found yet another item in my SUGAR PUFFS HONEY MONSTER collection.  This time around it's a yo-yo, which I acquired back in 1983 in response to a special offer by QUAKER OATS, when ol' Honey was still owned by the aforementioned company.  I've still got the envelope it arrived in, plus the cellophane bag (not shown) that contained it, as I always find it difficult to throw anything away.  More Honey Monster collectables as and when I find them, Crivs.

DON STARR'S TERRIFIC APPOINTMENT With FEAR PART ELEVEN...

Copyright relevant owner

Only two more episodes to go before this story draws to a conclusion, Crivs, but it'll be followed by a six-part adventure wherein DON STARR has an APPOINTMENT With Mr. BIG.  So that's another blast from the past that most of you can look forward to ignoring - if my blog stats on Don's current escapade are anything to go by.  There have been reprints of strips from four of the five POWER COMICS (WHAM!, SMASH!, POW!, and FANTASTIC) recently, so it would be good if TERRIFIC was accorded the same honour, and Starr's stories were re-presented in a modest softcover volume to a modern audience.  I've already got all the episodes in their original issues, but I'd still buy a nice new collected edition.  Anyway, to the handful of readers who are following this strip, enjoy this latest development. 

MIGHTY MARVEL CHECKLIST - AVAILABLE NOW!

SPIDER-MAN MAGAZINE #375

Copyright MARVEL COMICS.  Published by PANINI

MONTANA, OX, EEL and FANCY DAN.  Four names that you’ve probably never heard of, right? Well you soon will, pilgrims, because together they are... The ENFORCERS!, and it’s going to take a special team-up with Spidey to beat ’em!

Plus: This issue is crammed with super-arachnid activities, facts and features!

Available now!

£4.99.

MARTY PASKO PASSES AWAY...

MARTY PASKO was a well-known name in comicbooks, writing SUPERMAN, SWAMP THING, WONDER WOMAN and a whole host of others.  He also wrote for TV, on such shows as BUCK ROGERS In The 25th CENTURY, FANTASY ISLAND, and again, quite few other shows.  Sadly, he's died, at the far too young age of 65.  Another name from my comicbook reading youth now gone, alas.  Such a shame.  Condolences to family, friends, and fans.

DC AND MARVEL FACSIMILE EDITIONS...

Copyright MARVEL COMICS

I'm still waiting for a stack of Facsimile Editions and True Believers issues which have been held up because of the current 'situation', but thankfully four of them turned up today.  Two DC ones and two MARVEL ones, so there's balance for you.  The MIGHTY THOR #229 facsimile repeats an advert page in place of the BULLPEN BULLETINS page, which just might be deliberate because of concerns over a prominent announcement about Marvel's then-new photo-profile magazine devoted to HITLER.  (However, being fearless, I've reproduced the page below so that you can see what you're missing, alongside its repeated replacement.)

Facsimile and original - side-by-side

The other three issues are DETECTIVE COMICS #38, The BRAVE And The BOLD #28 (this version is much less expensive than the Loot Crate one I acquired a few months back), and The INCREDIBLE HULK #182, completing the story in which WOLVERINE made his first appearance in the Marvel Universe, which began at the end of #180.  Anyway, tell you what - instead of me blabbing on about them, why don't I just shut up and let all you Crivs get on with gaping at the cataclysmic covers?  You'd like that?  Okay, then get stuck in.

Copyright DC COMICS

Copyright DC COMICS

Copyright MARVEL COMICS

BABE Of The DAY - HUDSON LEICK...

Sultry HUDSON LEICK does a bang-on

impression of Dr. STRANGE - right down to

the STEVE DITKO hand-gestures.  (Admit it -

that was a clever way of combining the topics

 of babes and comicbooks in one post.)