Forty Years ago this Month

[Shellhead]

There were some good comics that came out that month. Sadly, this is the only one that I bought at the time: Lancelot Link, Super Chimp #1.



What can I say? I was a little kid at the time, and I liked that tv show.

[dan bailey]

Seeing no image there, Shellhead, I'm assuming that's the show we all watched while the TV was off.

[benday-dot]

There were some good comics that came out that month. Sadly, this is the only one that I bought at the time: Lancelot Link, Super Chimp #1.



What can I say? I was a little kid at the time, and I liked that tv show.

The first comic I ever owned, given to me by my parents, was a Lancelot Link comic as well. It's been a long standing mystery of mine as to which of the 8 issues it was. I still have a small portion of that primum mobile of a first comic. But it has no cover, indicia or even story titles in evidence... so who knows...

[Action Ace]

May 1971, I was one and a half and couldn't read yet. I have bought quite a few of these over the years in some form. I tend to not like this era as much as the Silver Age or my nostalgic love of the mid 1970s.

I love Mike's Amazing website.

I now own in comic or reprint form

Action 402
Adventure 408
Amazing Spider-Man #99
Avengers #90
Captain America #140
Detective #413
Fantastic Four #113
Iron Man #40
Superboy #176
Superman #240
Lois Lane #111
Jimmy Olsen #139 (if I have a book of the month, it's this one)
Teen Titans #34

I'd probably like to try out the Disney, Looney Tunes, Hanna Barbera and Underdog comics. Are they still fifteen cents each?

[Phil Maurice]

Sub-Mariner #37. Sal Buscema cover, Roy Thomas - scribe, Ross Andru - renderer, Sal again on finishing chores.

Death of the Lady Dorma, a fixture since the Golden Age.

It's now de rigueur to kill off the hero's beloved in some extraordinary fashion in order to crank up the angst. Certainly, Prince Namor was never lacking for reasons to be pissed off at the world in general, but this tragedy served to focus his rage as well as shine a light on his hubris. It was almost a test run for Gwen Stacy: Namor realized the danger too late. He arrived to rescue his companion too late. In his grief, he was robbed of vengeance since the Lady Dorma struck down her killer even as she died, also saving Namor's life in the process.

It was an event that would color the character for more than a decade. Again and again we would see the brooding, anguished Sub-Mariner return over and over to these events, and either descend into Lee-ian fits of self-recrimination, or lash out at anything and everyone in his path.

[TAG]

It was an event that would color the character for more than a decade. Again and again we would see the brooding, anguished Sub-Mariner return over and over to these events, and either descend into Lee-ian fits of self-recrimination, or lash out at anything and everyone in his path.

Albeit accurately, I’ve never heard Stan’s writing described that way. The same can be said for Namor.

Let’s use the comics that were on sale in that particular month for our discussions.

Let’s use mikes amazing world as our reference source.
http://mikesamazingworld.com/newsstand/

[Shellhead]

Sub-Mariner #37. Sal Buscema cover, Roy Thomas - scribe, Ross Andru - renderer, Sal again on finishing chores.

Death of the Lady Dorma, a fixture since the Golden Age.

It's now de rigueur to kill off the hero's beloved in some extraordinary fashion in order to crank up the angst. Certainly, Prince Namor was never lacking for reasons to be pissed off at the world in general, but this tragedy served to focus his rage as well as shine a light on his hubris. It was almost a test run for Gwen Stacy: Namor realized the danger too late. He arrived to rescue his companion too late. In his grief, he was robbed of vengeance since the Lady Dorma struck down her killer even as she died, also saving Namor's life in the process.

It was an event that would color the character for more than a decade. Again and again we would see the brooding, anguished Sub-Mariner return over and over to these events, and either descend into Lee-ian fits of self-recrimination, or lash out at anything and everyone in his path.

I knew Lady Dorma was killed, but I caught up later, with back issues and reprints. Until earlier today, I didn't realize that Dorma died before the notorious death of Gwen Stacy. Everybody talks about how Gwen's death was a milestone event in the history of superhero comics, but I guess it was only because it happened in a Spider-man comic instead of a lesser title like Sub-Mariner.

[Phil Maurice]

Everybody talks about how Gwen's death was a milestone event in the history of superhero comics, but I guess it was only because it happened in a Spider-man comic instead of a lesser title like Sub-Mariner.

Keep in mind this is pure speculation. I'm not suggesting that's what really happened, though it does seem serendipitous.

[Phil Maurice]

Let’s use the comics that were on sale in that particular month for our discussions.

Of course. A re-read of the thread makes that clear. Sorry.

[berk]

I was also not buying many comics off the newsstand in 1971 when my parents were in middle school.

Since Jez took my first choice, I'll go with:



by Harlan Ellison, Roy Thomas, and Sal Buscema.

---

Summary to the extent of my memory: Hulk gets shrunk.

---
Avengers is one of my favorite comics and in fact Avengers #309 was the first comic I ever bought back in 1989. I began following the series soon after. This was my introduction to "classic Avengers". I got it with a whole set of reprint comics they made in the early '90s. This set included a random assortment of comics, including an old issue of Young Men, and the Hulk comic this issue leads into.

At first I don't think I realized what I had was a reprint (the advertisements should have given me a clue) and I was excited at all the old comics I'd ended up with. I also don't think the name Harlan Ellison meant much to me at the time.

Years later, I've filled in my Avengers collection around that comic and now I think I have a complete Avengers collection from #68 through New Avengers #29 with the caveat that #88 is a second printing.

As I've never seen the need to buy the original.


EDIT: Apparently this comic was cover dated May 1971, but actually was on the stands two months earlier. And Shaxper has rightly reprimanded me. But I'm sticking with the entry anyway.

I remember this two-part story making a big impression on me as a kid - it was scary seeing the Hulk so easily manipulated and kind of helpless against that creepy insectoid Psyklop. Mind you, I haven't read it since and have no idea what I'd think of it now.

But yeah, I remember there being a two or three month difference between the cover date and the month it hit the shelves, so I suppose this one doesn't count. Looking at Mike's Amazing site I don't see much that I read at the time that actually came out in May 1971 - I think it was right around the time I stopped reading comics for a couple years (and missed tons of great stuff!)

Looking at Mike's gallery of comics that were on sale in May, the best comic that month was almost certainly Conan the Barbarian [edit: or New Gods or Mister Miracle - didn't see those before as I was looking at the Marvel releases only], but the only ones I think I read at the time was Fantastic Four #113 and Astonishing Tales #7.

FF#113 I remember as a good, solid FF story with nice Buscema/Sinnott artwork. Astonishing Tales #7 I still have a copy of and just looked at it - excellent Herb Trimpe artwork (pencils and inks) on the Ka-Zar story and good Colan/Giacoia artwork on the Doom/Panther story, though somewhat sub-par by Colan's standards. I love Colan+Giacoia on the early DD, but at this stage of Colan's career I think his style had changed and he really needed someone like Tom Palmer to look his best.

So, two minor, second-tier (in terms of quality) Marvel comics, neither of which really made a big impression on me. I think Astonishing Tales #7 is probably the more interesting comic in hindsight, for the Trimpe artwork and for being part of early stages of the attempts to elaborate Ka-Zar's universe and to evolve Doctor Doom into anti-hero protagonist as opposed to straight villain/antagonist.

[TAG]

Of course. A re-read of the thread makes that clear. Sorry.

According to Mikes website DC solicitations have a cover date of August. While Avengers #90 and Daredevil #78, both sold in May, 1971, had a cover date of July. Yet Captain America #140 has a cover date of August. There’s no real consistency. I thought it best just to go with what Mike’s website claims to have been sold during that month.

[Shellhead]

There were some good comics that came out that month. Sadly, this is the only one that I bought at the time: Lancelot Link, Super Chimp #1.



What can I say? I was a little kid at the time, and I liked that tv show.

For what it's worth, the link worked fine when I originally posted that comment, and then it stopped working. Then I got it working again, and now it isn't working. I guess the site mentioned by the OP really doesn't want me hotlinking to their cover images.

[dan bailey]

May 1971, I was one and a half and couldn't read yet.

You mean ... you can now? Please don't go into the newspaper field -- you'd be so overqualified that all your co-workers would hate you. I speak from bitter experience.

[Jamie]

You mean ... you can now? Please don't go into the newspaper field -- you'd be so overqualified that all your co-workers would hate you. I speak from bitter experience.

To be fair, he's still reading those funny books with pictures in'em and all.

[pakehafulla]

What a difference 40 years makes. 9 Romance titles and 30 Humour titles. Are there any Romance books these days? And how many humour?

Of the books on Mikes website, how could you go past Vampirella's Frazetta cover. For my money the Avengers and Conan are the best, and personal taste adds the Marvel westerns plus Cheyenne Kid, and the Warren titles.