Comic Reader Résumé: 3rd Week of September, 1986

Classic X-Men #4 reminds me of just what a crazy book this was. You had those utterly modern, exhaustively rendered, perfect super-hero images on the front cover and frontpiece by Arthur Adams. Then you'd have these brittle thin, awkward and fragile lines of John Bolton on the back covers and back-up stories. Bolton had that art school quality, and was such a misfit on costumed action, but perfect for these introspective character pieces that Chris Claremont was crafting. This one was about Logan and Kurt becoming fast friends during mock combat, and later as part of a dare where Nightcrawler reveals his true form in a town near to the X-Mansion. I'd argue it's a lesser tale, but there's swell story title lettering by Tom Orzechowski, and Bolton manages some surprisingly iconic hero images. Between the two, you have Dave Cockrum producing new pages of story to supplement the old, while Claremont reworks old dialogue to better fit later characterization and changing publishing standards. This came at no small expense, not the least because all that bonus content came at the cost of any advertisements or marketing materials on a newsstand comic. That said, it also came at a better than 25% mark-up on the usual 75¢ demanded for a typical Marvel Comic. Regardless, it was a good return on investment to get a top selling title out of a reprint from pre-royalty inventory material.

I recall seeing the first issue of G.I. Joe Comics Magazine, a digest-sized sequential reprint of the monthly comic, but I'm not confident that I ever bought any. As much as I was into the title, I didn't feel a compulsion to read back material, especial with the Yearbooks around to summarize it. I also like standard comic books mainly, with an allowance for magazines, but digest and treasuries were always too extreme in dimensions for someone who had to pack up all their worldly goods as often as I did. Further, digests were so puny-- such a compromised way of reading material that was never intended to be printed so small.

My following on to Elfquest #17 is somewhat inexplicable. I was still into fantasy trappings at that time, where I've since developed a strong aversion. I'm sure the pretty art, strong female characters, and soap opera were a draw. The abrupt stopping points and overall meandering nature were not, plus those annoying web fairies were still here. There was a lot of telepathic torture in this issue, as one would find in a typical X-Men comic. I don't think my brother was buying these either, so it was all me.

As much as I gripe about Keith Pollard's Marvel Saga covers, he's a great fit taking over The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Deluxe Edition with #13, Super-Adaptoid to Umar. Pollard did a lot of style guide work, and most of the art for the Master Edition. He's no Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez, but he knows his way around these characters and the Bronze Age Marvel style. If you don't immediately notice the absence of John Byrne, he's getting the job done, with all due credit to the inks of Josef Rubenstein. All the usual suspects are inside: Byrne, Zeck, Simonson, plus another couple of entirely random Bollands. Paul Smith contributes, and I could have included him with the other surnames, but I thought folks might assume I meant Barry Windsor-Smith. Which leads me to wonder, how did we ended up with more Bolland pieces in OHOTMU than BWS ones?

I feel like I should have learned my lesson by Super Powers #4, but the comic is too familiar to deny. Maybe my brother bought it, or I dug it out of a quarter bin within a few years of relief? This final issue was about Kupperberg and Infantino playing with the same Wave Three action figures that I would have, if I had them all. They never made a Janus figure, which was just Darkseid masquerading in a more comics-accurate Orion look than the Man-E-Faces version from the toys, but Golden Pharaoh, Mr. Miracle, Tyr, Steppenwolf, and the rest were still on toy aisles for you to play your own games on Apokolips. Well... maybe not Cyborg, but I do think I have a vague recollection of passing on that now highly sought after figure for something much more gimmicky and disposable, probably Cyclotron and his dumb removable face plate. Which I didn't have long before it got stolen, like I hope also happened to this lousy comic.

As referenced last month, my brother bought The Mighty Thor #374 as a tie-in to the Mutant Massacre crossover, and I think closer to the time of release. It must have been so disappointing to circle back to #373 for a few pages of lead-in already covered in that same week's X-Factor comic. Anyhow, Thor takes on Harpoon, Blockbuster, and Vertigo, sending them running in moments. That trio was more than holding their own, at least with a few more members at any given time, against whole X-teams. Thor was saving Angel, who was permanently crippled in this encounter. So I guess that helps depict their relative power levels, and if I recall correctly, Thor was at reduced strength in this period. Wasn't the whole reason he grew the beard because his visage had been rendered ghastly by the touch of death? No really-- I haven't read these comics in nearly forty years, and was never big on Thor. That's why when they go back to Baldar and the Midguard Serpent, I check right out. I hope I remember right, because one of the Marauders comes back to break Thor's arm, and the only other thing he does in the crossover is wander around and befriend Artie, the big-headed pink kid that projects holograms. Not a big win for the Thunder God, here.

More Simonson on Simonson action coming at you in X-Factor #11, another chapter of the notorious Mutant Massacre. This one isn't as well remembered because it's mostly about Morlocks that lived, at least for now, but still a sight better than the early issues.