Monday, 25 April 2016

1975: JAMES BOND IN THE DEADLY HANDS OF KUNG FU ISSUE 13 (MARVEL COMICS)

From May 1975: Roger Moore's JAMES BOND grabs the cover action in THE DEADLY HANDS OF KUNG FU issue 12. 

As far as I know, this was the first time that 007 graced the front cover of a Marvel mag (albeit published under the Curtis banner)... but certainly not the last.

This (no doubt) Eon unauthorised outing was to accompany a lengthy article about martial arts in the Bond movies. There was no 007 strip material.  

Bond did get two authorised outings in Marvel Comics during Moore's tenure with both FOR YOUR EYES ONLY (1981) and OCTOPUSSY (1983) getting adaptations. 

The former boasted art by Howard Chaykin and appeared as a one-shot magazine and two issue limited series. It was one of the adaptations that appeared as the third feature in the UK's RETURN OF THE JEDI weekly several years later. 

OCTOPUSSY was adapted by the British team of Steve Moore and Paul Neary. I picked up a copy of the UK hardback annual yesterday and the colouring really is terrible. It looks more worthy of a World Distributors annual than a Marvel publication. It appeared in the States as an issue of MARVEL SUPER SPECIAL with no comic book version and no British run in a regular comic. 

3 comments:

  1. I have that OCTOPUSSY annual and despite the art, it also has some good articles on the movie itself.


    And speaking of vintage annuals...for my birthday today, I received a mint condition MIGHTY WORLD OF MARVEL annual from 1977.


    Hurrah !


    as seen here :

    http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Mighty-World-Of-Marvel-Annual-1977-UK-Hardcover-Story-Hard-To-Find-Marvel-/161535197557?hash=item259c3f8175:g:5joAAOSw~uhUnLBM

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