frank giacoia – Coke ⊕ Comics

Tales of Suspense #81, Story B

The Red Skull Supreme!

Featuring: Captain America
Release: May 3, 1966
Cover: September 1966
12 cents
Script: Stan (The Man) Lee
Art: Jack (King) Kirby
Inking: Frank (Good Guy) Giacoia
Lettering: Artie (Smarty) Simek
Recruiting: Irv (Fall Guy) Forbush
10 pages

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Tales of Suspense #80, Story B	Reading order	Tales to Astonish #82
Tales of Suspense #81	Tales of Suspense	Tales of Suspense #82

There is nothing I cannot do! The universe itself must bend to my wishes, so long as I hold the Cosmic Cube! My every wish– my every command– must be instantly obeyed!

At this point, of the many many nicknames we’ve seen in credits, Stan the Man Lee, and Jack King Kirby are by far the most common.

I’m doing a thing I don’t like doing and skipping into the middle of this comic, skipping the Iron Man story at the start.

We had a choice as we have at least two cliffhangers to resolve. See what happens between Namor and Iron Man or between Cap and the Red Skull? I’ve chosen the latter. The fight between Iron Man and Namor continues in Namor’s title, so we have to read that before we get to this Iron Man story. And I was eager to see the resolution of this Captain America story.

Also, this issue’s Iron Man story begins a new saga, one I don’t want to entangle with the web of comics we’re in the middle of.

Red Skull has the Cosmic Cube, giving him godlike power.

He gets in a good villain monologue we use for the pull quote above.

While Cap’s thoughts form a good heroic response.

My life means nothing! The fate of all mankind is at stake! If he isn’t stopped– humanity itself is doomed!

Red Skull creates a creature called the Man-Thing to menace Cap. Won’t be the last Marvel character to use this name.

Tales of Suspense #79, Story B

The Red Skull Lives!

Featuring: Captain America
Release: April 12, 1966
Cover: July 1966
12 cents
Script: Smilin’ Stan!
Art: Jolly Jack
Inks: Frantic Frankie
Lettering: Agonized Artie
10 pages

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Tales of Suspense #79	Reading order	Tales of Suspense #80
Tales of Suspense #79	Tales of Suspense	Tales of Suspense #80

My oldest enemy! The most dangerous menace to freedom and democracy that the world has ever known!! Then– this must be why fate has spared me so long–?! It’s my destiny to battle him– to stand between the Red Skull and free men everywhere!

Well, that’s a compelling title.

Costumed assassins attack a power plant in the heart of New York.

They seemed to expect Captain America to show up. How do villains set these traps to target a particular superhero in New York. “If I commit a crime in New York I’m bound to attract precisely the superhero I intend!” Green Goblin just had a bank robbery, trusting Spider-Man would show up to foil it. Would Daredevil turning up ruin these plans?

But nobody but Cap saw these villains. Is he going insane?

Daredevil #21

The Trap is Sprung

The Trap is Sprung
Featuring: Daredevil
Release: August 2, 1966
Cover: October 1966
12 cents
Spellbinding script: Stan Lee
Phenominal pencilling; Gene Colan
Dynamic delineation: Fearless Frank * Darlin’ Dick * Wild Bill
Laudatory lettering: Artie Simek
Bombastic bird-watching: Irving Forbush
20 pages

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Daredevil #20	Reading order	Amazing Spider-Man #41
Daredevil #20	Daredevil	Daredevil #22

“Daredevil!! B-but how–??”
“Would you believe– blind luck??”

The credited inkers are Frank, Dick, and Bill. I presume that means… Frank Giacoia, Dick Ayers, and Bill Everett.

Is Colan the regular artist now? It suggested last issue was a fill-in. But he’s now drawn 2 issues in a row and is set to draw the next 80 or so.

On a personal note, this is the earliest issue of Daredevil that I own.

Daredevil #20

The Verdict is Death!

Featuring: Daredevil
Release: June 30, 1966
Cover: September 1966
12 cents
Script: Smilin’ Stan Lee
Pencilling: Gentleman Gene Colan
Inking: Fearless Frank Giacoia/Melancholy Mickey Demeo
Lettering: Adorable Artie Simek
Bad-Guy Booer: Honest Irving Forbush
20 pages

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Thor Annual 2	Reading order	Daredevil #21
Daredevil #19	Daredevil	Daredevil #21

In this court– presided over by the Owl– I make my own laws!

I’m a little confused about who the inker is. GCD claims Esposito, who we see credited in the reprint below by his standard pen name, Mickey Demeo. The GCD also claims the original comic has this credit. UHBMCC claims that the original comic credits Giacoia. Earth’s Mightiest Blog has a scan of what looks like the original credits, and it’s Giacoia.

Looking at various collections on my shelves, the Epic Collection and Marvel Masterworks volumes credit Frank Giacoia; but the Essential Daredevil credits Esposito.

Here’s the original art for the issue, which has Giacoia, though you can see it appears to be a last minute change over a whited-out name.

Note about pencilling that John Romita is too busy polishing off the Amazing Spider-Man Annual. Though he only does the layouts for that comic.

In fact, Colan turns out to not just be filling in. As of this issue, he’ll be the regular penciler on Daredevil for the next several years, freeing Romita to focus on Spider-Man.

Daredevil #19

Alone– Against the Underworld!

Featuring: Daredevil
Release: June 2, 1966
Cover: August 1966
12 cents
Script: Masterful Stan Lee
Art: Magnificent Johnny Romita
Inks: Melodramatic Frank Giacoia
Lettering: Melancholy Sam Rosen
20 pages

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Thor #136, Story B	Reading order	Sgt. Fury Annual 2
Daredevil #18	Daredevil	Daredevil #20

“You’ve got to confess that it was a hoax!”
“But then I’ll never have a chance with Karen!”

Hello. Happy new year. Welcome to this blog. We will be reading along with Daredevil #19, the 548th comic in the story that is the Marvel Universe, by our reckoning.

We’ve had a busy few months and found some complications in the Marvel Universe, which unfortunately delayed this latest entry. I thank the readers for their patience.

Without further ado, let’s try to recall that Foggy has recently been pretending he was Daredevil in order to impress Karen. The ruse led to Foggy finding himself in a Daredevil costume, battling a new super-villain called the Gladiator. This all began when Spider-Man mistook Foggy for Daredevil while searching for the Masked Marauder. The Masked Marauder remains at large.

Foggy does not seem to have learned a lesson from last issue’s shenanigans.

Daredevil #18

There Shall Come a Gladiator!

Featuring: Daredevil
Release: May 5, 1966
Cover: July 1966
12 cents
Story by: Smilin’ Stan Lee
Art by: Jazzy Johnny Romita
Inks by: Fearless Frank Giacoia
Lettering by: Swingin’ Sammy Rosen
20 pages

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Marvels #3	POSTLUDE
X-Men #23	Reading order	Fantastic Four #52
Daredevil #17	Daredevil	Daredevil #19

Karen is about 99% convinced that I’m really Daredevil! But, she still hasn’t said she’ll marry me!

Next to the credits, we learn Stan had scripted 7 pages before taking a vacation, and that Denny O’Neil finished the script.

We met Dennis O’Neil on the final two issues Ditko’s Dr. Strange, his first comics work. He won’t be at Marvel long. He’ll go on to pretty good things at the Distinguished Competition.

Foggy enters a costume shop featuring various superheroes and villains. Recall how we saw a lot of superhero sculptures from Wally Wood to show off his takes on the characters; this is Romita’s chance to show he’s qualified for a variety of titles. Unfortunately Wood left before trying his hand at other Marvel characters.

Romita will be with Marvel for the rest of his days, and have generally more positive things to say about Stan and their relationship than the artists we’ve been seeing up until now. And Romita will get plenty of chances in the future to draw the characters he’s depicting here.

Avengers #30

Frenzy in a Far-Off Land!

Featuring: Avengers
Release: May 10, 1966
Cover: July 1966
12 cents
Stan Lee: Writer
Don Heck: Artist
Frank Giacoia: Inker
Sam Rosen: Letterer
Irving Forbush: Arbitrator
20 pages

Previous	#522	Next
Amazing Spider-Man #38	Reading order	Avengers #31
Avengers #29	Avengers	Avengers #31

But, the past is over now! The past is dead! You are the master no longer! I’m free of you… at last!

We just saw Galactus appear in the middle of New York. There to devour the Earth. The Avengers have a mansion in the middle of New York. Why didn’t they help out?

Well, maybe they were away. Where? Surely not just elsewhere in New York fighting Black Widow. Maybe off wherever the Collector’s castle is? Or in the middle of the Atlantic fighting Attuma? Or perhaps they were in the “Far-Off Land”, as the title suggests. It seems likely they were quite far away.

Now, the Avengers won’t make it to the titular Far-Off Land this issue, but next issue.

And Marvels will claim this is where the Avengers were when Galactus attacked. Which is good enough for me.

Tales of Suspense #78, Story B

Them!

Featuring: Captain America
Release: March 10, 1966
Cover: June 1966
12 cents
Wondrous words by: Stan Lee
Awesome art by: Jack Kirby
Incredible inking by: Frank Giacoia
Lop-sided lettering by: Artie Simek
10 pages

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Tales of Suspense #78	Reading order	Fantastic Four #48
Tales of Suspense #78	Tales of Suspense	Tales of Suspense #79

…the world will soon tremble before the power of– Them!

In Captain America’s recent battle with Batroc, Batroc was working for some secret cabal. In the pages of Strange Tales, we learned the Fixer was working for some secret cabal called Them. They had some plot involving miniature brains. I don’t know if these two cabals are connected.

Nick Fury confronts Captain America at Avengers HQ. This is their first meeting in the present. Captain America refers to him as “Sarge”, but it’s Colonel Fury now. They reference fighting together, presumably referring to Sgt. Fury #13. That is the only prior meeting we know of.

When Fury notes Cap hasn’t aged much, Cap says Fury seems pretty well-preserved himself. Is this just a compliment? Or a first hint that Fury uses some form of special formula to keep himself young. They last met 20 years ago. Fury could have been in his ’20s then and ’40s now.

Tales of Suspense #77, Story B

If a Hostage Should Die!

Featuring: Captain America
Release: February 10, 1966
Cover: May 1966
12 cents
Script: Stan Lee
Layouts: Jack Kirby
Penciling: John Romita
Inking: Frank Ray
Lettering: Sam Rosen
Kibitzing: Irving Forbush
10 pages

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Tales of Suspense #77	Reading order	Tales of Suspense #78
Tales of Suspense #77	Tales of Suspense	Tales of Suspense #78

Oh, Cap… Cap… will this war never end? Will we never be able to lead normal lives? How can we speak of love… when the world is in flames… when I don’t even know your name!

With famed romance artist John Romita on pencils, we will learn the story of the “girl from Cap’s past”. There’s going to be some confusion here. A lot of confusion, in fact. So let’s review what we know.

Two issues ago, Cap encountered a female SHIELD agent who reminded him of an old flame. This SHIELD agent has an older sister who once dated a man named Steve Rogers.

We see the final parting of Cap and this woman in his memory. We’ll recall it here for reference.

Not a lot of details about this woman to go off, but enough that this issue will find a dozen ways to contradict them.

A documentary about Cap’s role in the liberation of Paris stirs up Cap’s memories. He notes it’s been over 20 years. He lost her that day and never learned what became of her, if she survived the war or not.

“That lightning and thunder… it’s like the angry roar of the past… trying to capture me again!”

Daredevil #17

None Are So Blind..!

Featuring: Daredevil
Release: April 5, 1966
Cover: June 1966
12 cents
Writer: Smilin’ Stan Lee
Artist: Jazzy Johnny Romita
Inker: Fearless Frankie Ray
Letterer: Swingin’ Sammy Rosen
Complaints may be sent to the irascible Irving Forbush!
20 pages

Previous	#506	Next
Daredevil #16	Reading order	Strange Tales #144
Daredevil #16	Daredevil	Daredevil #18

It’s the challenge… the thrill of battle… the danger! That’s what really grabs me! And, I’ve a hunch that Spider-Man feels the same way!

Who’s Irving Forbush?

Recall the situation: The Masked Marauder had manipulated Daredevil and Spider-Man into being suspicious of each other. Now not only does Spider-Man think Daredevil is in league with the Masked Marauder, but he believes Foggy is Daredevil!

And remember, we’re supposed to be seeing what we think of John Romita’s take on Spider-Man. Somebody needs to take over for Steve Ditko!