{"id":30760,"date":"2024-10-22T08:00:39","date_gmt":"2024-10-22T08:00:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/?p=30760"},"modified":"2024-10-20T14:40:09","modified_gmt":"2024-10-20T14:40:09","slug":"the-a-z-of-marvel-monsters-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/2024\/10\/22\/the-a-z-of-marvel-monsters-2\/","title":{"rendered":"The A-Z of Marvel Monsters"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\" \"\"
\nBy Jack Kirby<\/strong>, Dick Ayers<\/strong>, Stan Lee<\/strong>, Larry Lieber<\/strong> & various (Marvel)
\nISBN: 978-1-3029-0863-8 (HB\/Digital edition)<\/p>\n

Win\u2019s Christmas Gift Recommendation: Fan Smash! \u2026 9\/10<\/strong><\/p>\n

This book includes Discriminatory Content<\/strong> produced in less enlightened times.<\/em><\/p>\n

To dyed-in-the-wool comic book fanboys there\u2019s a much beloved period in history when a frankly daft and woefully formulaic trend produced utter, joyous magic. We look back on it now and see only the magnificent art, or talk with loving derision of the crazy (and frequently onomatopoeic) names, but deep down we can\u2019t shake the exuberant thrill inside or the frisson of emotion that occurs when we see or even think of them.<\/p>\n

Before Jack Kirby & Stan Lee brought superheroes back to Marvel Comics, the company was on its last legs. Locked into a woefully disadvantageous distribution deal, the company\u2019s output was limited to some sixteen genre titles. But there was hope\u2026<\/p>\n

The outside, mainstream, world was currently gripped in an atomic B-movie monster craze, so Lee, Kirby and Steve Ditko dutifully capitalised on it in their anthology mystery titles Journey into Mystery<\/strong>, Strange Tales<\/strong>, Tales to Astonish<\/strong> and Tales of Suspense<\/strong>. In an unending procession of brief inspirational novelettes, dauntless or canny or just plain outsider humans outsmarted a succession of bizarre aliens, mad scientists, an occasional ghost or sorcerer (this was, after all, the heyday of the Comics Code Authority when any depiction of the supernatural was BAD) and a horde of outrageous beasties in a torrent of wonders best described by the catchphrase \u201cmonsters-in-underpants.\u201d<\/p>\n

Simplistic, moralistic, visually experimental yet reassuringly predictable in narrative, these Outer Limits<\/strong>-style yarns were – and still are – the epitome of sheer unrelenting fun with no redeeming social context required. Marvel have increasingly celebrated that fact in recent years (even folding most of the yarns into their modern multiversal continuity) and – over the course of one month – commissioned a line of 26 \u201cKirby Monster\u201d variant covers for their periodical releases, all lovingly crafted by a number of top names to highlight the treasured contribution of beasties, things and what-nots…<\/p>\n

This volume gathers those images in a handy hardcover primer (and eBook edition) whilst gloriously gilding the lily with a splendid selection of a few of the original mini-epics as created from those pre-Marvel Age masterpieces. The short sharp surprise is suitably augmented by \u2018Jack Kirby, Atlas Comics & Monsters!\u2019<\/em>: a 1994 Introduction<\/em> from the King himself.<\/p>\n

The next bit\u2019s another shopping-list moment,<\/em> so if you want to skip ahead a little,<\/em> I shouldn\u2019t be at all surprised…<\/em><\/p>\n

Augmented by the original cover of each diabolical debut, the worshipful A to Z art-section opens with Erica Henderson\u2019s reinterpretation of \u2018The Awesome Android!\u2019<\/em> (as first seen in Fantastic Four<\/strong> #15) and rapidly follows up \u2018The Blip!\u2019<\/em> by Simon Bisley, and \u2018The Crawling Creature!\u2019<\/em>, delineated by Maguerite Sauvage. An extreme late entry in the Kirby-Kritter Circus, \u2018Devil Dinosaur!\u2019<\/em> launched in his own title in 1978 and his moody reprise from Matthew Wilson is followed by Jeff Lemire\u2019s take on \u2018Elektro!\u2019<\/em> and \u2018Fin Fang Foom!\u2019<\/em> – first seen in Strange Tales<\/strong> #89, and rendered here by Walter Simonson & Laura Martin.<\/p>\n

Michael & Laura Allred depict latter-day cellulose celluloid star \u2018Groot!\u2019<\/em> (originating in Tales to Astonish<\/strong> #13), before Francesco Francavilla highlights \u2018The Hypno-Creature!\u2019<\/em>, Paolo Rivera revisits Fantastic Four<\/strong> #24\u2019s weird menace \u2018The Infant Terrible!\u2019<\/em>\u00a0and Glenn Fabry regales us with an Asgardian god battling \u2018The Jinni Devil!\u2019<\/em> in a scene that didn\u2019t make it into 1967\u2019s Thor<\/strong> #137…
\n\"\"
\nDave Johnson details a key point in the life of \u2018Kraa the Unhuman!\u2019<\/em> before John Cassaday & Matthew Wilson illuminate the depredations of \u2018Lo-Karr, Bringer of Doom!\u2019<\/em>, after which Geof Darrow whisks us back to Thor<\/strong> #154 to meet again amalgamated atrocity \u2018Mangog!\u2019<\/em><\/p>\n

Kirby\u2019s astounding 1976 Eternals<\/strong> series produced many incredible images, with Paul Pope & Shay Plummer selecting 2,000 feet tall Space God \u2018Nezarr the Calculator!\u2019<\/em> to set the pulses racing, whilst Mike del Mundo plumps for Strange Tales<\/strong> #90\u2019s \u2018Orrgo!\u2019<\/em> and James Stokoe recalls Strange Tales of the Unusual <\/strong>#1 (December 1956)\u2019s forgotten fiend \u2018Poker Face!\u2019<\/em><\/p>\n

Recurring FF foe \u2018The Quonian!\u2019<\/em> first appeared in Fantastic Four<\/strong> #97 and wows again here thanks to Christian Ward, after which Eric Powell previews \u2018Rommbu!\u2019<\/em> and Tradd Moore pits Ant-Man<\/strong> against Tales to Astonish<\/strong> #39 terror \u2018The Scarlet Beetle!\u2019<\/em> before Chris Bachalo & Tim Townsend show us the power of \u2018Thorr!\u2019 <\/em>Chris Samnee & Wilson expose the fervent ferocity of Journey into Mystery<\/strong> #63\u2019s undersea goliath \u2018Ulvar!\u2019<\/em> and Arthur Adams & Chris Sotomayor hark back to Tales to Astonish<\/strong> #17 to focus on \u2018Vandoom\u2019s Monster\u2019<\/em> after which one last FF antagonist features as Cliff Chiang reveals \u2018The Wrecker\u2019s Robot!\u2019<\/em> as seen in Fantastic Four<\/strong> #12.<\/p>\n

Wrapping up this astounding alphabet are Dan Brereton\u2019s rendition of \u2018Xemnu!\u2019<\/em> and Phil Noto\u2019s depiction of \u2018The Yeti!\u2019<\/em> who battled Kirby\u2019s Black Panther<\/strong> in #5 before Tony Moore & John Rauch hilariously conclude the countdown with alien outlaw \u2018Zetora\u2019.<\/em><\/p>\n

Okay. Maybe a few of those spooky stalwarts might have been from a later era and star in superhero sagas, but the influence and intent was clearly seen throughout and just sets the tone for the Kirby-crafted fearsome fantasy-fest that follow…<\/p>\n

The family-friendly monster mash – featuring scripts by Lee and Larry Lieber with Dick Ayers inking – opens with \u2018I Learned the Dread Secret of The Blip!\u2019 <\/em>(Tales to Astonish<\/strong> #15, January 1961) wherein an openminded radar operator attempts to assist a stranded alien energy being. \u2018I Dared to Battle the Crawling Creature!\u2019<\/em> comes from TtA<\/strong> #22 (August 1961) as a scrawny High School nerd travels into the bowels of the Earth to face a primitive predator, whilst an aging electronicist creates and eventually counters would-be computerised conqueror \u2018Elektro! He Held the World in his Iron Grip!\u2019 <\/em>(Tales of Suspense <\/strong>#19, January 1961).
\n\"\"
\nThe hideous Hypno-Creature<\/em> harried a very human hero in extra-dimensional invasion epic \u2018I Entered the Dimension of Doom!\u2019<\/em> (ToS <\/strong>#23, November 1961) whilst facing hulking atomic victim \u2018Kraa the Unhuman!\u2019<\/em> (ToS<\/strong> #18, June 1961) proves the making of a timid American teacher…<\/p>\n

A sunken stone head on a Pacific Island proved to be big trouble when explorers awakened ancient alien invaders in \u2018Here Comes…<\/em> Thorr the Unbelievable\u2019 <\/em>(Tales to Astonish<\/strong> #16, February 1961) and the origins of Defenders<\/strong> villain Xemnu the Titan<\/em> are exposed in \u2018I Was a Slave of the Living Hulk!\u2019<\/em> (Journey into Mystery<\/strong> #62, November 1960) whilst one hapless human proves to be the perfect hideout for extraterrestrial fugitive Zetora in \u2018The Martian Who Stole My Body!\u2019<\/em>, as seen in JiM <\/strong>#57 (March 1960).
\n\"\"
\nFoolish, fabulous, thrill-packed, utterly intoxicating and unforgettable, these are fun-filled tales no puny human could possibly resist.
\n\u00a9 1956-1961, 2017 Marvel Characters Inc. All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Jack Kirby, Dick Ayers, Stan Lee, Larry Lieber & various (Marvel) ISBN: 978-1-3029-0863-8 (HB\/Digital edition) Win\u2019s Christmas Gift Recommendation: Fan Smash! \u2026 9\/10 This book includes Discriminatory Content produced in less enlightened times. To dyed-in-the-wool comic book fanboys there\u2019s a much beloved period in history when a frankly daft and woefully formulaic trend produced … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “The A-Z of Marvel Monsters”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[191,222,81,165,290,54,98,117,146,79,127,107,100],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-30760","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-adventure","category-ant-man","category-art-books","category-black-panther","category-dinosaurs","category-fantastic-four","category-hulk","category-jack-kirby","category-marvel-horror","category-marvel-superheroes","category-nostalgia","category-science-fiction","category-thor"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4AFj-808","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30760","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=30760"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30760\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":30767,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30760\/revisions\/30767"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30760"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=30760"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=30760"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}