FF Memories & Memorabilia

[Malus]

100th Page of the little thread that could!

 

[Grog]

Thanks Malus. Don't know how I overlooked this thread for so long. Its really enjoyable to see those awesome covers. Thanks for all of your hard work!

I'd love to contribute a few close-ups. My collector website has so many items per image that the coolness of the graphics get lost in those pics.

Here is an odd one. Its a 1966 FF coloring book from the UK. The interior has the FF fighting Doom who has stolen the Surfer's powers. Whats unique is that the interior is all original art, not from a comic. The art is pretty poor though.

 

[Grog]

My last entry for this evening is a 1966 Marvel Flyers. Besides the Thing as pictures there was also a Torch, Sub Mariner and Doom.

 

[Malus]

Those Marvel Flyers are really something. Never seen them anywhere near that close and detailed! Thanks!!
The art style on that UK coloring book cover looks familiar.
Is the interior art similar or truly much worse?

 

[Agent 194]

Hmmm, a Thing with five toes. Makes me wonder how those deals were made. Marvel was obviously not the machine it is now in all respects. Disney is so strict about how their images/characters are drawn.

 

[Kelly]

One thing I keep noticing......Sue almost ALWAYS has her hand up near her mouth......that is getting really annoying....


She just needed to punch whatever was in front of her and move on.....

 

[Malus]

Here is an odd one. Its a 1966 FF coloring book from the UK. The interior has the FF fighting Doom who has stolen the Surfer's powers. Whats unique is that the interior is all original art, not from a comic. The art is pretty poor though.

One thing I keep noticing......Sue almost ALWAYS has her hand up near her mouth......that is getting really annoying....
She just needed to punch whatever was in front of her and move on.....

Maybe she's in pain...Looks like her legs are stuck in the ground or Ben is standing on them.

Thanks for posting this, Grog!
Hope there's more in store!

 

[Grog]

The art style on that UK coloring book cover looks familiar.
Is the interior art similar or truly much worse?

Malus, the interior looks a lot more sloppy than the cover. For a coloring book I expect the inked lines to be very distinct and bold and this book does not meet that criteria.

 

[Grog]

This is a 1980 book and record set. It is treasury sized 11x17 and has inks by Sinnott. I have seen this twice and only once with the record inculded. It is written on the level of a Spidey Super-Story and the art is done by a artist from that series, Morttmer. Still, its a FF vs Doom story that very few have seen. Sorry Albafan, but Sue does put her hands to he face again .

http://mysite.verizon.net/vzeo8gvj/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/book_record1980pg23.jpg

 

[Mercurius]

Although it was fashionable in the 60's to show a fragile female in that context, I suppose everybody here would prefer a more tough Sue.

Well, it was John Byrne who made The Invisible Woman other stuff than the "damsel in distress". And I feel the movie wants to prove she is strong, but still presents us (mostly in FF2) a very superficial woman, sometimes even annoying.

 

[Agent 194]

This is a 1980 book and record set. It is treasury sized 11x17 and has inks by Sinnott. I have seen this twice and only once with the record inculded. It is written on the level of a Spidey Super-Story and the art is done by a artist from that series, Morttmer. Still, its a FF vs Doom story that very few have seen. Sorry Albafan, but Sue does put her hands to he face again .

Hmm.....looks like direct swipes of Romita art. Especially that Thing and Human Torch with the outstretched fingers on the jacket cover. The art is not the best but a lot better than others I've seen for this kind of stuff.

 

[Agent 194]

Which reminds me,...speaking of superhero records.......anyone ever have the Conan record where he fights a giant worm which turns out to be mechanical when he destroys it? The sound effects of it dieing are hilarious. They are of an electric guitar pinching off high to medium range notes and not done really all that well. The dialogue it horrible. "Why, it's some sort of mechanical beast!" "With gears and springs for innards." "Not life at all." "By Crom! What wizardry is this?"

Used to have that record and I think my Mother did away with it long after I left the house. Would be fun to have today.

 

[Malus]

Well, it was John Byrne who made The Invisible Woman other stuff than the "damsel in distress".

Writers before Byrne did toughen Sue Richards up a bit; he just took it to the next level. And of course Byrne instituted the name change, from "Invisible Girl" to "Invisible Woman." And with the "Malice" split-personality story, he basically established that she's the most powerful member of the FF.

And I feel the movie wants to prove she is strong, but still presents us (mostly in FF2) a very superficial woman, sometimes even annoying.

Your opinion is appreciated (and on-topic) but before a debate breaks out in here on the merits (or lack thereof) of the franchise's characterization of Sue Richards, let me reitterate that this thread is intended primarily for the "show-and-tell" of FF memorabilia. Most of us are here to enjoy the nostalgia and common ground of FF fandom, so we try to steer away from "hot button" subjects like Alba's portrayal of Sue or the faithfulness of the Thing costume. In that respect, it's sort of an oasis from the rest of the forum. Thanks for understanding.
Now all you FF2/Sue defenders stand down please and let's move on.

 

[Malus]

That cover looks to be "inspired" by this Jack Kirby cover from FF #181 in 1977...one of several instances where Kirby momentarily forgot that the Thing has THREE fingers, not FOUR:

And yeah, the artist actually manages to make Sue look more ineffectual than she appears on the original cover.
On the original, Reed is saying they both have to stay back. But on the coloring book cover, he's getting into the action while appearing to be holding her back. Maybe that's because he knows that, as the most powerful member of the FF, Sue might accidentally hurt their foe....?

Thanks for another great contribution, Grog!

 

[Mercurius]

Your opinion is appreciated (and on-topic) but before a debate breaks out in here on the merits (or lack thereof) of the franchise's characterization of Sue Richards, let me reitterate that this thread is intended primarily for the "show-and-tell" of FF memorabilia. Most of us are here to enjoy the nostalgia and common ground of FF fandom, so we try to steer away from "hot button" subjects like Alba's portrayal of Sue or the faithfulness of the Thing costume. In that respect, it's sort of an oasis from the rest of the forum. Thanks for understanding.

Totally right, sorry for the detour.

And great, great thread, by the way.

 

[Agent 194]

Look at you Malus. Good call. CSI Malus. I was off on this one.

 

[Malus]

great thread, by the way.

Thanks a bunch, Mercurius. Hope you stick around!

Look at you Malus. Good call. CSI Malus. I was off on this one.

Hahaha...Thanks.
It jumped right out at me. Those Kirby FF covers from the 70's are seared into my memory.
I missed out on the true golden years of FF (I started with #112, almost a year after Kirby left) so the covers he did from '75-'78 are really special to me. I was 12 when #181 came out, so it's one of those front-burner memories.

So here's one from Italy (I presume):

"La Torcia Che Fu " sounds like "Pepe Le Pew," no?

 

[Malus]

Black and white British weekly from 1977.
It reprints FF#136 from 1973, and the "second chapter" of FF #2 from 1961:

For comparison, here's FF#136:

And from that British weekly, here's something I can't recall Marvel ever doing stateside: an FF puzzle page!

All images copyright MARVEL COMICS

 

[Tony Stark]

Hmm.....looks like direct swipes of Romita art. Especially that Thing and Human Torch with the outstretched fingers on the jacket cover. The art is not the best but a lot better than others I've seen for this kind of stuff.

Romita even admitted when he first took over FF, he was overwhealmed and he told Stan there was no way he could reproduce what Kirby did. He is often quoted as having said, "thank God for John Buscema or the FF never would have been the longest running book."

On the other hand Kirby never could draw Spider-man right.

 

[Agent 194]

I could have sworn the way those fingers were splayed out on the Torch that that was Romita. Oh well.

No,...I never liked Kirby's Spider-Man eyes. However, I really like what he did with him in (is it FF 77 )where Spidey, Thor and everyone guests in that book. I thought he did some really cool stuff with him in that one. His swinging sequences really caught my attention as a kid out of that book.

 

[highguard]

That cover looks to be "inspired" by this Jack Kirby cover from FF #181 in 1977...one of several instances where Kirby momentarily forgot that the Thing has THREE fingers, not FOUR:

And yeah, the artist actually manages to make Sue look more ineffectual than she appears the original cover.
On the original, Reed is saying they both have to stay back. But on the coloring book cover, he's getting into the action while appearing to be holding her back. Maybe that's because he knows that, as the most powerful member of the FF, Sue might accidentally hurt their foe....?

Thanks for another great contribution, Grog!

Just for comparison, note how dynamic the Kirby Thing pose is as compared to the knockoff. That is the genius of Kirby he knew how to present the action shot.

So easy for the master.

 

[Iron Maiden]

I could have sworn the way those fingers were splayed out on the Torch that that was Romita. Oh well.

No,...I never liked Kirby's Spider-Man eyes. However, I really like what he did with him in (is it FF 77 )where Spidey, Thor and everyone guests in that book. I thought he did some really cool stuff with him in that one. His swinging sequences really caught my attention as a kid out of that book.

John Romita Sr did a lot of touch ups back then as I believe he functioned as the art director/editor on a lot of things besides being the penciller for Spider-Man.

 

[Malus]

I could have sworn the way those fingers were splayed out on the Torch that that was Romita. Oh well.

Well the "homage" looked as much like Romita as Kirby. There's almost nothing left of the Kirby energy in that drawing.

No,...I never liked Kirby's Spider-Man eyes. However, I really like what he did with him in (is it FF 77 )where Spidey, Thor and everyone guests in that book. I thought he did some really cool stuff with him in that one. His swinging sequences really caught my attention as a kid out of that book.

It's issue #73, one of those I put up in its entirety:
http://forums.superherohype.com/showthread.php?t=254833&page=41

I kinda dig the way Kirby rendered Spidey's eyes and the webs on his mask. Reminds me of the way he looked in Ralph Bakshi's Spidey cartoon back in the 60's - if the webs had been fully drawn on the mask!
Kirby's Spidey is a bit stiff at times, but it doesn't "stop my eye" as I look at FF #73.
Here's a couple of sample pages from 73:

 

[Malus]

Images copyright MARVEL COMICS

 

[Malus]

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