tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8419605150672201683.post2155707921230356815..comments2024-03-01T14:01:34.480-08:00Comments on Marvel in the Silver Age: Marvel's First Magazine - The Spectacular Spider-ManAirPiratePresshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13136561512898563240noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8419605150672201683.post-36561601386596059252016-12-02T14:26:27.897-08:002016-12-02T14:26:27.897-08:00Don't get me wrong, Kid ... for me, the loss o...Don't get me wrong, Kid ... for me, the loss of Colan on Iron Man was just the first drip of lowering standards on Marvel books from 1968 on. Next we would be losing Steranko from SHIELD, then the cancellation of Colan's Dr Strange. Then the rapid deterioration of the Silver Surfer book after it first downsized to a 15c book then a revolving door of inkers replaced the mighty Joe Sinnott ... and of course, Stan was winding down as a writer around this time, too ... I didn't have anything against George Tuska's work, but it didn't grab me the way Colan's had. For me, Colan was the only artist to make Iron Man's armour look like it was made of metal.AirPiratePresshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13136561512898563240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8419605150672201683.post-82711976505136659262016-12-01T15:55:01.576-08:002016-12-01T15:55:01.576-08:00Having said that, Al, I thought George Tuska and J...Having said that, Al, I thought George Tuska and Johnny Craig did an excellent job on Iron Man after Gene Colan's departure from the mag.Kidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07224781868125924337noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8419605150672201683.post-81729083130368000462016-12-01T12:45:02.983-08:002016-12-01T12:45:02.983-08:00I agree it may seem that way, Russ, looking back n...I agree it may seem that way, Russ, looking back now. But back in 1968, I was approaching my 14th birthday, and to me, the expansion of Marvel seemed exciting. I loved the Silver Surfer book at the time, and it's hard to separate that nostalgia for an objective look now. But in reality, you're right ... Stan (or possibly Martin Goodman) didn't factor in that such fast expansion required a rapid influx of talent, something Goodman wasn't prepared to pay for, so the expansion was bound to founder. For me the first casualty was Gene Colan leaving Iron Man after the first issue ... after that, it was a downhill slide into the excesses of the stretched-thin Marvel of the 1970s ...AirPiratePresshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13136561512898563240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8419605150672201683.post-23699154573753731532016-11-30T07:58:15.931-08:002016-11-30T07:58:15.931-08:00For me, this was the point at which Marvel became ...For me, this was the point at which Marvel became more sizzle than steak, though it was inevitable, just because of logistics. You can't always have the work of Ditko and Kirby to back up the hype once you've expanded beyond the production ability of a few brilliant creators.<br /><br />The two major pushes, Spectacular and Surfer were both promoted as mind-altering advances in the comics form and were disappointing to me (and possibly the marketplace) in different ways. I thought Stan's backstory for the Silver Surfer made him a smaller and more mundane character than he potentially was and the series seemed to lack a coherent vision in general (though the art could be pretty amazing at times). And I felt that Marvel's production on their black and white comics was pretty shoddy, considering the quality of the tone work in Warren Publications and Mad. Steve Ditko's work in Eerie showed a true mastery of the medium and the duotone spreads that Wally Wood had done in Mad were just stunning. I remember Stan promoting SS as "truly a work of art" but, because of the uneven and washed-out tone work, what it looked like to me was a Spider-Man comic they'd forgotten to color.Russhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04809592629762693427noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8419605150672201683.post-44991858239853561832016-11-29T06:21:46.505-08:002016-11-29T06:21:46.505-08:00I have a copy of YOU DON'T SAY and I'm awa...I have a copy of YOU DON'T SAY and I'm aware of MONSTERS TO LAUGH WITH ... but the reason I didn't consider them in this post is that they're not actually comics. I referenced Goodman's other earlier mags as perhaps the inspiration for SPECTACULAR SPIDER-MAN and the comic mags that followed it, but I didn't think the two gag-mags fitted the bill of relating to SPEC SPIDEY. Rightly or wrongly ...AirPiratePresshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13136561512898563240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8419605150672201683.post-28300851402331539052016-11-28T19:22:22.181-08:002016-11-28T19:22:22.181-08:00So you don't consider Monsters to Laugh With/M...So you don't consider Monsters to Laugh With/Monsters Unlimited to be the first Marvel magazine? <br />http://monstermagazinegalleries.blogspot.com/2009/09/monsters-to-laugh-withunlimited.html<br />Stan Lee even gets cover credit with the second issue.<br />The indicia lists the publisher as Non-Pareil Publishing Corp. - the same as The Spectacular Spider-Man.<br />(Though The Spec. Spidey does mention Marvel on the contents/indicia page.<br />D.D.DeggUnknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14702136958579137033noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8419605150672201683.post-16419489673253628662016-11-27T11:51:47.470-08:002016-11-27T11:51:47.470-08:00Yes, you're right. In fact, when Goodman got w...Yes, you're right. In fact, when Goodman got wind of Hefner's plans to publish a magazine called STAG, he immediately hit Hef with an injunction. Hef changed his title to PLAYBOY and the rest is publishing history. Weirdly, both Hefner's and Goodman's mags would later be distributed by DC Independent News ...AirPiratePresshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13136561512898563240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8419605150672201683.post-39736711240698651372016-11-27T11:40:06.682-08:002016-11-27T11:40:06.682-08:00If I remember correctly, 'Playboy' was ori...If I remember correctly, 'Playboy' was originally going to be called 'Stag', but had to change the title because another mag of that name already existed. I'm guessing that it was Martin Goodman's publication that thwarted Hugh Hefner's plans. Another fascinating post as usual, Al.Kidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07224781868125924337noreply@blogger.com