Comments on: Into the back issue box #39

By: Casey

Casey — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 18:41:11 +0000

Ha! I think I had the Hulk or Silver Surfer annual from this particular cluster. Good times...

By: kreetrapper

kreetrapper — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 17:02:40 +0000

Itâ€™s back, baby!

Woohoo! Finally!!!

By: Greg Burgas

Greg Burgas — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 13:47:48 +0000

Yeah, that's how they spelled it, Mike. Tiger Shark was #4 on the list, I think, and they do mention that Dorcas created him.

By: Mike Blake

Mike Blake — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 03:18:02 +0000

It was Dr. Dorcas, not Dorcus; did they really spell like that in the annual? He is best remembered as the mad scientist who created the villainous Tiger Shark using experiments on a disgruntled swimmer who wanted to go to the Olympics.

By: John Trumbull

John Trumbull — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 21:22:29 +0000

That panel of Namor saying "Allow me" while stomping on a badguy is a Berni Wrightston swipe from the Batman issue of Swamp Thing. Pretty blatant one, too.

By: Random Stranger

Random Stranger — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 13:29:25 +0000

"Has there ever been a Fantastic Four-centered crossover that wasnâ€™t horrific?"

Art Adams's New Fantastic Four?

For what its worth while the building probably is a cute dig at DC's then headquarters (are they still there? I haven't checked) my understanding is that the building is a pretty major publishing hub.

By: Ajit

Ajit — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 06:12:47 +0000

"and although he succumbs to the time period and gives us some mouth-spanning saliva, Not to defend the 1990s, but that particular trick goes back half a century to Lou Fine; Steranko mentions it as one of Fine's traits in his History of Comics.

By: Michael

Michael — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 05:31:26 +0000

Has there ever been a Fantastic Four-centered crossover that wasn't horrific?

By: Andrew-TLA

Andrew-TLA — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 05:17:45 +0000

Atlantis Attacks. Atlantis Rising was a rather horrific Fantastic Four-centered crossover.

By: Michael

Michael — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 04:57:05 +0000

Evolutionary War and Atlantis Attacks. The mini-crossovers came out of that. Of course, they didn't always make sense; I'm pretty sure the Silver Surfer and the Punisher were part of a block one year.

By: Tom Fitzpatrick

Tom Fitzpatrick — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 03:47:04 +0000

I remember the clustered annuals (or the quartet annuals), were nowhere nearly as bad as 20-plus annuals that linked altogether (like the Evolutionary -something war, and the Atlantis Rising(?) ).

By: Grico

Grico — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 00:15:20 +0000

I'm glad to see this feature back. Its a fun one to relive random comics and see how they show the trends of their eras. I do feel a bit nostalgic for the late 80s, early 90s cross over annual stories even if they were often not all that great objectively.

By: Kiki

Kiki — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 21:58:18 +0000

Hurray! I've missed Into the Back Issue Box. I can't add anything about this issue, since I never read it, but I do like how you summarize. And you're right, a comic that is entertaining (even if only mildly) and acts as a potential gateway comic has done its job and has nothing to be ashamed of.