On Pages 11 to 15 of 1973’s The Defenders #4: One Page, One Thought, More Or Less. (3/4)

Continued from here: Page 11: Even at my most shamefully contrarian, I’d struggle to argue that the scene of The Enchantress’ violating transformation of Barbara Norris into The Valkyrie is anything other than fabulously well-worked. If the preceding pages could be said to suffer from the over-simplified designs and the sparsely detailed artwork, the very […]

On The Defenders #4 Pages 6 to 10: One Page, One Thought, More Or Less (2/4)

continued from the post discussing the first five pages of Defenders #4 here And so to page 6, which reveals little that’s new and absolutely essential bar the Executioner’s identity and his somewhat amped-up power set. Yet if the plot is little advanced, it is a sequence that sees Englehart and Buscema reconciling Namor’s fiercely […]

One Page, One Thought, More Or Less: On 1973’s The Defenders #4 (1/4)

In which the blogger does something he’s always wanted to do, namely, working through a comic and offering one brief thought, mostly, for each of its pages. Page 1: The splash of The Defenders #4 is a prime example of how colour can inadvertently diminish the virtues of black and white art. By this, I […]

On “New Gods” #7: 10 Key Superhero Titles From 1971/2: What Else Was Around When The Defenders First Saw Print? (3/4)

By chance, as I was rereading New Gods #7 for this post, some stills from the upcoming director’s cut of 2017’s Justice League by Zack Synder were released. Several of them featured the new version of the film’s take on Darkseid and his court: All of which prompted me to post a brief Twitter thread,: […]

An introduction to ‘”Shameless”?: The Comics Career Of Mark Millar’.

INTRODUCTION “But no one is well served by history in the style of super-hero comics.” – Alex Ross, (*1) This isn’t a biography of Mark Millar, although it will inevitably seem to be one in places. To discuss thirty years and more of a writer’s career is to unavoidably appear to be sketching out their […]

On One Aspect Of Sal Buscema’s Storytelling in 1972’s The Defenders #3.

We rather take it for granted that Sal Buscema was a superb storyteller, but what exactly does that mean? Why was it that his art, even when little more than sparse layouts turned out by necessity at speed, was adored by many of the writers who collaborated with him? We share general points about the […]

At Last, The Sub-Mariner!: On 1972’s The Defender’s #2

On The Secret Of The Surfer from 1972’s The Defenders #2 by Steve Englehart, Sal Buscema, John Verpoorten, John Constanza, Roy Thomas et al. The Sub-Mariner had spent most of The Defender’s debut issue trapped and unconscious in a magically-created prison of water. Worse yet, it appeared that the Silver Surfer was part of the […]

On Superman #247 & Batman #239: 10 Key Superhero Titles From 1971/2: What Else Was Around When The Defenders First Saw Print? (2/3)

(Continued from here ) As a rule, the less continuity there’s been, the more continuity fascinates. In Must There Be A Superman?, Elliot S! Maggin set about tightening the little-explored connections between DC Comic’s various ‘cosmic’ stories. Referencing the Green Lantern and Justice League canons, Maggin’s story has the Guardians Of The Galaxy plunge Superman […]

Steve Englehart Sorts Things Out: On 1972’s The Defenders #1.

On “I Slay The Stars” in August 1972’s The Defenders #1 by Steve Englehart, Sal Buscema, Frank Giacoia, Artie Simek et al. From the very first page of I Slay The Stars, there’s an acute sense that newly arrived writer Steve Englehart had analysed the strengths and weaknesses of The Defenders’ rather underwhelming try-outs in […]

10 Key Superhero Titles From 1971/2: What Else Was Around When The Defenders Debuted? (Part 1 of 2)

The Defenders first appeared in the debut issue of Marvel Feature published in the third full week of July 1971. The title’s initial quarterly schedule meant that the second Defenders tale wouldn’t appear until mid-October of the same year, with the non-team’s final tryout appearance arriving in January 1972. The sales must have shown some […]