sam rosen – Page 14 – Coke & Comics

Amazing Spider-Man #18

The End of Spider-Man!

Featuring: Spider-Man (for the moment)
Release: August 11, 1964
Cover: November 1964
12 cents
Written by: Stan Lee, author of “The Fantastic Four”
Illustrated by: Steve Ditko, illustrator of “Dr. Strange”
Lettered by: Sam Rosen, letterer of… “Patsy Walker”???
22 pages

Previous	#259	Next
Amazing Spider-Man #17	Reading order	Strange Tales #126
Amazing Spider-Man #17	Amazing Spider-Man	Amazing Spider-Man #19

Check out that cover. Quite the contrast with pretty much every other superhero cover. The superhero is usually portrayed as tough, dramatically standing against the odds. In the worst case, the cover might show the villain winning, but the superhero remains defiant. This one has Spider-Man cowering and hiding from the villain.

In this story, Peter decides to quit being Spider-Man. He’s thought about it before, but he’s about to actually quit for the first time. It won’t be the last time, or even necessarily the most famous time. A similar story will get told and retold across decades of Spider-Man stories and even make its way into Spider-Man 2. (More directly, the film borrowed from Amazing Spider-Man #50, which borrowed from this issue.)

Note we’re reading this and the last issue together because they make a strong arc when read together. In terms of continuity, it has been weeks since the conclusion of the last issue, so it’s likely several other heroes’ adventures we’ve read occurred in the interim.

The story begins with everybody reacting to Spider-Man’s retreat: heroes, villains, people on the street… guy can’t run away from a single fight without everybody having an opinion. Ditko is great at people reacting to things.

Wasp notes that wasps and spiders are natural enemies. Always found that a weird thing to say. But she’s said it before and she’ll say it again; it’s an obsession of hers whenever the topic of Spider-man comes up.

This is an excellent comic for helping shape the nature of the relationship between Human Torch and Spider-Man. They’ve had some banter and conflict before, but also teamed up. A friendly rivalry. We saw how friendly last issue when Johnny attended the Spider-Man Fan Club meeting and then was quick to help Spider-Man against the Goblin. Now, he seems uncertain. He witnessed Spider-Man’s cowardice firsthand, but still wants to think better of his friend.

Amazing Spider-Man #17

The Return of the Green Goblin!

Featuring: Spider-Man
Release: July 9, 1964
Cover: October 1964
12 cents
Ruggedly written by: Stan Lee
Robustly drawn by: Steve Ditko
Recently lettered by: S. Rosen
22 pages

Previous	#258	Next
Sgt. Fury #11	Reading order	Amazing Spider-Man #18
Amazing Spider-Man #16	Amazing Spider-Man	Amazing Spider-Man #18

The Green Goblin returns. I was not impressed with this villain in his first appearance. I am not that impressed with him 60 years later. But he is perhaps Spider-Man’s most popular villain, considered by many to be the definitive Spider-Man villain. Why?

I have a theory, a cynical one, mind you. Perhaps Team Goblin folks can correct me. My theory is this: Green Goblin is the villain in all the best Spider-Man stories, most of which would work just as well if you substituted in any villain. Case in point: this story.

A classmate of Peter’s refers to the James Bond novels. The character had already made his way into at least two films by this point as well. We’ll look back to the current place in pop culture of James Bond when SHIELD gets introduced, to see if we detect any influence.

This remains the only series to really handle the out-of-costume soap opera well. Almost every other title needs to keep its focus on the mission or the villain. Here, the villain shows up for the fight on page 13. Stan and Steve are confident they can fill 12 pages with character work, and they can.

Green Goblin has a new glider. Last time, he had a flying broomstick instead. This is definitely cooler, and he notes it’s faster and more maneuverable… but the old one he specifically noted was designed to make fatal error impossible. He neglects to mention if this new glider has been so designed.

That bottom middle panel. We’ve basically seen it before.

The Green Goblin reveals his arsenal: pumpkin, ghost, frog, moon, bat. Of these weapons, the pumpkin will prove surprisingly enduring.

Tales of Suspense #59, Story B

Captain America

Featuring: Captain America
Release: August 11, 1964
Cover: November 1964
12 cents
Author: Stan Lee
Illustrator: Jack Kirby
Inked by: Chic Stone
Lettered by: S. Rosen
10 pages

Previous	#255	Next
Tales of Suspense #59	Reading order	Avengers #9
Tales of Suspense #59	Tales of Suspense	Tales of Suspense #60

Captain America is back with his own series, more or less. He doesn’t get the title of the magazine, but he gets a regular feature. He and Iron Man will be sharing Tales of Suspense. Very few characters get the title of the magazine. Daredevil and Spider-Man are special like that.

Captain America of course debuted in his own self-titled mag, Captain America Comics, way back in 1941. He was one of Marvel’s most popular superheroes for the entire decade. His comic was then retitled into Captain America’s Weird Tales for its final two issues to focus on the burgeoning horror genre. The final issue in 1950 didn’t even feature Captain America.

They tried a revival of the Captain America series in 1954, but it only lasted three issues. Fans were not as interested in seeing Cap smash Commies as they had been seeing him battle the Nazis a decade earlier.

Ten years later, they’re ready to try again. This time, the character will endure. Within 4 years, they’ll change the title of this comic to Captain America and that series will basically continue (with the occasional renumbering) to the present, over 55 years later.

All that said, this series doesn’t quite begin with a bang.

Daredevil #4

Killgrave, the Unbelievable Purple Man!

Featuring: Daredevil
Release: August 4, 1964
Cover: October 1964
12 cents
Sensational story by: Stan Lee
Awe-inspiring art by: Joe Orlando
Infallible inking by: Vince Colletta
Lots of lettering by: S. Rosen
22 pages

Previous	#253	Next
Journey Into Mystery #109, Story B	Reading Order	Tales of Suspense #59
Daredevil #3	Daredevil	Daredevil #5

Daredevil still has that stupid hood sack thing to keep his civilian clothes. They had somehow taken a bad costume and made it even worse.

Fortunately, he’ll realize early in the issue that it’s impractical to the point of imbecilic and we’ll be rid of it.

This issue introduces Purple Man, who has the power to sap people’s wills and make them responsive to his commands. Only Daredevil seems resistant to his influence.

Journey Into Mystery #109, Story B

Banished from Asgard!

Featuring: Tales of Asgard
Release: August 4, 1964
Cover: Ocotber 1964
12 cents
Author: Stan Lee
Illustrator: Jack Kirby
Delineator: Vince Colletta
Letterer: Sam Rosen
5 pages

I think the Mountain Giants are a new set of villains. They seem to be careful naming the groups of giants. We’ve met the Frost Giants and the Storm Giants. Now, we meet Mountain Giants. Their queen is Knorda, a normal-sized woman.

Journey Into Mystery #109

When Magneto Strikes!

Featuring: Thor
Release: August 4, 1964
Cover: October 1964
12 cents
Written by: Stan Lee, the monarch of the Marvel Age, at the pinnacle of his power!
Illustrated by: Jack Kirby, the prince of pageantry, at the height of his titanic talent!
Inked by: Chic Stone, the dean of line design, at the peak of his prowess!
Lettered by: S. Rosen, the sultan of spelling, at the little table in his studio!
18 pages

I don’t know what to make of these Thor stories since Kirby returned to the title. The art is certainly improved. This is very iconic Kirby, especially with Stone on inks. Everything very melodramatic, especially the posing.

And it’s cool that Thor meets Magneto. The battle between them starts off pretty well. Again, Kirby on that dramatic action depiction.

But the weaknesses of the story increasingly detract as the issue goes on. That battle which had been going well then moves to the now familiar trope where Thor loses his hammer and becomes Dr. Blake mid-battle, luckily just out of view of the villain. How did he lose it? He dropped it, then forgot about it.

After 60 seconds, the hammer turns into a walking stick. Sometimes that is what happens, and sometimes it is not.

Fantastic Four #31

The Mad Menace of the Macabre Mole Man!

Featuring: Fantastic Four
Release: July 9, 1964
Cover: October 1964
Written by: Stan Lee, the man with the talented typewriter!
Illustrated by: Jack Kirby, the man with the power-packed pencil!
Inked by: Chic Stone, the man with the panoramic paint-brush!
Lettered by: S. Rosen, the man with the leaky lettering pen!
21 pages

I’d like to reflect back to Fantastic Four #11. Things were revealed there which are contrary to my general impression of these characters. Some key facts were that Reed and Ben had served in World War II. Prior to the war, they had both finished college. Further, he and Sue were sweethearts prior to the war.

We did a lot of math about what that meant, math I’m sure Stan Lee never did. But he must have had some sense of what he was saying. He had been a sergeant himself in World War II. He must have known that claiming Reed and Ben served in the same war he did made them about his age. He similarly knew that it was quite odd to have a sweetheart for 20 years and still not be married. He must have known these things.

The one thing I suspect he didn’t think about was that Johnny was in high school. This necessarily put a gap of almost twenty years in age between brother and sister. I have a friend whose brother is 30 years older than he, so I know this is possible. But I really don’t think Stan intended it.

Stan certainly gives the impression in the stories that Reed has let Sue stay single too long, but I assume he intends to mean she should have been married by 23 and she’s now like 26 or something. But that’s inconsistent with the World War II facts, which suggests she’s pushing 40 and still unmarried, but with at least two suitors.

Either way, Johnny is in high school. And whether his sister is ten or twenty years older than he, she is definitely much older and seems to be his guardian. There has been no mention of parents.

Until now.

Tales of Suspense #58

In Mortal Combat with Captain America!

Featuring: Iron Man
Release: July 9, 1964
Cover: October 1964
12 cents
Every word you are about to read was written by ol’ faithful Stan Lee, one of the world’s most prolific script writers!
Every drawing you are about to marvel at, was created by Don Heck, one of America’s most promising illustrators!
Every bit of inking you are about to savor was done by Dick Ayers, one of the industry’s most painstaking artists!
Every sentence you are about to scan was hand-printed by Sam Rosen, one of Marvel’s most perspicuous letterers!
18 pages

The story begins with Iron Man battling a shark. That’s cool.

This story will guest star Captain America. Remember in Strange Tales #123 when Thing was a guest star, and then he was sharing title billing by issue 124? Or how Hulk was a guest star in Tales to Astonish #59, and then had his own regular feature in Tales to Astonish #60? I don’t know why I’m bringing those up.

Kraven and Chameleon return to America after their most recent deportations. Iron Man catches Kraven sneaking ashore, but Chameleon gets away.

I really appreciate the battle between Iron Man and Kraven. So often in superhero comics, they exaggerate the threat the villain poses against the hero. This has been a particularly pernicious problem with heroes as powerful as Thor and Iron Man, who tend to outclass their villains. It is thus rather refreshing to see the battle between Iron Man and Kraven resolved within 3 panels, as it should be.

Strange Tales #125

The Sub-Mariner Must Be Stopped!

Featuring: Human Torch and Thing
Release: July 9, 1964
Cover: October 1964
12 cents
Written by: Word-slingin’ Stan Lee
Drawn by: Picture-sketchin’ Dick Ayers
Inked by: Ink-splatterin’ Paul Reinman
Lettered by: Pen-pushin’ S. Rosen
13 pages

Dr. Strange gets a mention, but the cover real estate is again mostly devoted to Human Torch and Thing.

Thing and Human Torch battle Namor at sea, where they really are completely outmatched.

This turns out to be an issue of misunderstandings.

Sgt. Fury #10

On to Okinawa!

Featuring: Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos
Release: July 9, 1964
Cover: September 1964
12 cents
Written by: Stan Lee (the ol’ three-striper himself)
Illustrated by: Dick Ayers ( the ol’ high-flyin’ corporal)
Inked by: Geo. Bell
Lettered by: S. Rosen
22 pages

A feature of this comic has been a desire to send the Howlers to every theater of the war. They are based in England, but have already fought in Germany, Italy, Africa… now they’re off to Japan. Does it make any actual sense that a single squadron would have such geographically disparate missions? I don’t think we’re supposed to worry about it.

Captain Sawyer describes Okinawa as Japanese-occupied. An odd phrasing. Japan had conquered it over 60 years earlier. At some point, it’s just part of Japan. At the time the comic was published, Okinawa was occupied by America, but has since been returned to Japan. It remains part of Japan to this day.

Captain Sawyer and the other characters refer to the Japanese as “Japs”. Today, this is generally recognized as a racial slur that was prevalent among 1940s Americans. Having the characters use such language is likely historically accurate.