Featuring: Dr. Strange Release: December 8, 1966 Cover: March 1967 12 cents A mystic Marvel masterwork by: Stan Lee and Marie Severin Lettered by: Sam Rosen 10 pages
I must endure their blows… regardless of the pain… By the Omnipotent Oshtur, I shall not fail… I shall not fall!
After Ditko left, Bill Everett became the regular artist on Dr. Strange for the next half dozen issues. And I was unimpressed. But I do really like Bill Everett. Last post, I rattled off Sub-Mariner, Venus, and Daredevil. All great works by him.
We get a new artist. Marie Severin. We haven’t seen her work yet. We saw her coloring when we read an old tangentially related EC comic. We saw an issue of Nick Fury illustrated by John Severin. Some possible connection, there. Siblings, perhaps.
But she’s actually been with Marvel for the entirety of our reading, just one of those unsung heroes behind the scenes, working on the production of the comics, sometimes as a colorist, perhaps lending a hand to some bits of art here or there.
Featuring: Dr. Strange Release: October 11, 1966 Cover: January 1967 12 cents Truly hath Stan Lee authored yon awesome epic– Verily hath Bill Everett such scenes depicted– And, finally didst Artie Simek the lettering incribe! 10 pages
I’d say this issue picks up where the last issue left off, but nothing happened last issue. Except that Clea was captured by Umar after a recap of the last 40 issues.
Everett’s depiction of Dark Dimension is fine, maybe even good. Maybe I’m just in a bad mood since Ditko left and am being unfair to Everett. I do appreciate Everett for his work on Sub-Mariner, Venus, and Daredevil… just not here.
The Power of SHIELD! Featuring: Nick Fury, Agent of SHIELD! Release: October 11, 1966 Cover: January 1967 12 cents Script: Smilin’ Stan Lee Layouts: Jolly Jack Kirby Artwork: Jaunty Jim Steranko Lettering: Adorable Artie Simek 12 pages
So long as men such as you exist– men who are dedicated not merely to the cause of nationalism– but to international freedom– to global justice– so long will the lamp of liberty continue to burn bright– until men of good will, everywhere, put down their arms and come forth to reason together!
Once again, Kirby is on layouts with Steranko on art, but the character work looks more like Steranko this issue than last, perhaps suggesting looser layouts from Kirby.
Worth noting this will be Stan Lee’s final work on Nick Fury, Agent of SHIELD. He remains the editor, of course.
Last issue, Nick had escaped Hydra, but was unwittingly piloting their Overkill Horn. We pick up there this issue. Sitwell is in charge of SHIELD, and manages to destroy the Horn, fearing he has killed Fury in doing so. But Nick gets free.
Featuring: Dr. Strange Release: September 8, 1966 Cover: December 1966 12 cents Script by Stan Lee, defender of the faith! Art by Bill Everett, keeper of the flame! Lettering by Artie Simek, printer of the word! 10 pages
By the Demons of Darkness! By the oath I now speak! Umar commands– reveal what I seek!
At the end of last issue, we briefly met Dormammu’s sister Umar.
Given how weird and cool Dormammu looked, it’s disappointing to see his sister look just like a human woman. You can try to explain it off as these beings having amorphous forms or such. But it mostly seems like a failure of creativity and design.
Featuring: Nick Fury, Agent of SHIELD Release: September 8, 1966 Cover: December 1966 12 cents Script: Smilin’ Stan Lee Layouts: Jolly Jack Kirby Illustrations: Jaunty Jim Steranko Lettering: Adorable Artie Simek Hood laundering: Irate Irving Forbush 12 pages
So you’re the guys who’re gonna take over the world, huh?
A new name in the credits. Who is this Jim Steranko on the art over Kirby’s layouts?
He had apparently dabbled in comics briefly in 1957, but I have no examples of that. His first work came out for Harvey just three months earlier. He co-created several adventure heroes for them like Spyman. And perhaps contributed to varying degrees to the stories.
Per The Comics Journal, some of this work such as in Double Dare Adventures is illustrated by Steranko.
Either way, he’s new to comics. This is a pretty big assignment for a rookie. Let’s see if he makes anything of himself.
Featuring: Captain America Release: September 8, 1966 Cover: January 1967 12 cents A Stan Lee Jack Kirby premium presentation Inimitable inking by: Frank Giacoia Laborious lettering by: Sam Rosen 10 pages
Indeed, eet shall be for zee last time, mon ami…! For none may strike Batroc in such a manner… wizout paying zee price!
“This must be the place,” thinks Cap, anticipating David Byrne.
In Tales of Suspense #76, Captain America defeated Batroc, but a SHIELD agent on assignment succumbed to poison and was hospitalized. We didn’t learn her name. She reminded Cap of a woman he’d known in World War II, a woman whose name we also didn’t learn.
Featuring: Nick Fury, Agent of SHIELD Release: August 9, 1966 Cover: November 1966 12 cents Script… Stan Lee Layouts… Jack Kirby Pencils… John Buscema Inks… Frank Giacoia Letterings… Sam Rosen Ear plugs… Irving Forbush 12 pages
‘Cut off a limb, and two more shall takes its place!’ We were right… Hydra still lives!
We read the second half of this issue already. Last issue really ended the AIM stuff, and this issue begins the return of Hydra arc, so I wanted that cutoff. But the Dr. Strange stories cut a bit differently, as this issue ends the Kaluu arc and next issue properly begins the Umar arc.
Kirby is on hand for the layouts, but the main art credit goes to John Buscema. We spoke of him at length with his return to Marvel in Tales to Astonish #85, published one week prior to this. And we’ll be seeing a lot more of him.
We begin with Nick in a strange contraption performing a dangerous test. So dangerous, he won’t let anyone else do it. It’s a prototype Overkill Horn. They are concerned an enemy has a real one.
Perhaps a Super-Overkill Horn. Adding the word Super in front of something already called the Overkill Horn seems like, well, overkill.
Featuring: Fantastic Four Release: August 2, 1966 Cover: November, 1966 25 cents Conceived and created by: Stan Lee (scenarist) & Jack Kirby (illustrator) Inked and lettered by: Joe Sinnott (Delineator) & Sam Rosen (Calligrapher) Recited and ignited by: Irving Forbush (part-time non-entity) 19 pages
The Original Human Torch! Reborn– only to die again!
We began our Marvel reading with Fantastic Four #1, released in August 1961. But Marvel had 22 years of history predating that comic. What is the relationship between those older comics and the modern 1960s ones? We’ve seen some impacts.
Featuring: Fantastic Four Release: July 7, 1966 Cover: November 1966 12 cents Produced by: Stan Lee and Jack Kirby Delineated by: Joe Sinnot Lettered by: Artie Simek 20 pages
Our biggest problem seems to be keeping the somewhat disoriented Marvel Universe in some semblance of order! But, when you constantly mess around with space/time warps, and continuums, negatives zones, intra-cosmic deviationary fields, and universes beyond the reached of infinity, you’re apt to get a little bit confused! So bear with us, erudite one, for verily thou hast the seeming of a true believer!
Two notes about the credits. The first is that there are two Ts in Sinnott.
The second is that the credits will stop specifying Stan Lee as the writer, when Kirby is doing most of the writing. The compromise is the nebulous “produced by” credit. Ditko had fought for a similar credit in his comics before leaving.
Sue is upset that Reed is always working, and not spending enough time with his wife. Not the first time we’ve seen this complaint.
Reed has all kinds of fancy technology, including a visi-phone which connects to his lab. Wow. A visi-phone. Imagine being able to talk to someone remotely and see them at the same time!
