Tuesday 12 May 2015





From September 1981: the New Season issue of LOOK-IN... and also the end of an era...

Proof positive that the CBS live-action SPIDER-MAN TV show took its sweet time (delayed by the feature film versions) to cross the Atlantic... the announcement of its impending arrival on ITV from LOOK-IN.  

It was usual practice for LOOK-IN to publish strip adaptations of any pre-watershed (ruling out THE PROFESSIONALS) shows deemed of sufficient interest to its readership and not already licensed to another title (which didn't seem to stop them doing their own versions of BATTLESTAR GALACTICA and THE A-TEAM) which would have made Spidey a shoe-in.  Except, of course, Marvel UK had those rights all stitched up.  The long-running weekly changed its name (SUPER SPIDER-MAN TV COMIC) and format (glossy front-and-centre spreads) to make the most of the marketing moment.  

Other highlights of the new ITV season (LOOK-IN was, of course, published by ITV Publications... owned by the regional ITV companies principally to publish their listings in TV TIMES magazine) included METAL MICKEY (another show that, for different reasons, never secured a comic strip slot herein... although the editors were confident enough to announce its impending debut.  It went to TV TOPS instead) and John Inman in TAKE A LETTER MR JONES.  Sadly LI readers were deprived of the chance to read a weekly dose of comic strip campery as well.  

This was also the last issue to feature the often stunning artwork covers (notable for some very odd combinations of cover stars depending on who was featured on any particular week) that served it so well throughout most of the Seventies.  The following issue switched to the photo-covers that continued for the rest of the mag's long run. 

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