STARLOGGED - GEEK MEDIA AGAIN: MARVEL ACTION

Showing posts with label MARVEL ACTION. Show all posts

Wednesday, 29 July 2015

1981: MARVEL SUPER ADVENTURE PART 6 (Marvel UK)

From October 1981: the end is nigh... the final weeks of MARVEL SUPER ADVENTURE.

Although it managed to outlive its companion MARVEL ACTION by sixteen issues, MSA didn't really fare much better and followed it into the pages of CAPTAIN AMERICA before the end of the year.

The merger, which saw Daredevil survive but the MSA brand immediately vanish without trace (the first 'merged' issue conspicuously didn't mention MSA anywhere on the cover), coincided with the return of glossy covers (banished from the superhero weeklies since the Marvel Revolution of early 1979) and it's possible that the Bullpen deemed MSA unworthy of the upgrade... or they believed that marginal sales wouldn't survive the increased cover price (a 5p jump to 20p a copy).

The CAPTAIN AMERICA weekly, which also included Thor from the Marvel Action merger, was also on borrowed time. This second merger, combined with the relaunch, pushed it into the following year but it was still cancelled in April.

The Black Panther didn't fare quite so well and the end of MSA marked the last regular outing of the character in the UK line.

Note the use of the word "newstand" in the half-page ad for the merger. It might have been common parlance in the States but barely used here in the UK.

BTW, for some reason I didn't scan the cover of issue 23. I'll add it next time I have a scanning sesh.

Friday, 29 August 2014

1981: MARVEL UK CHECKLIST

Here's what a truly devoted British Marvelite should have been buying from the British Bullpen in July 1981.

This bumper list of Starlogged-friendly stuff appeared in MARVEL ACTION issue 15 (cover-dated 8 July 1981).

Wednesday, 2 May 2012

1981: CAPTAIN AMERICA WEEKLY - PART ONE

In February 1981, Marvel UK launched their most patriotic British periodical to date: CAPTAIN AMERICA. Hmmm.

Published in what we call the "Skinn II" format, CA retained the almost-newsprint-quality non-glossy covers and black and white interiors but didn't partake in Dez Skinn's old habit of reformatting the existing US pages of age to squeeze more panels per-page and more strips per-issue.

Captain America is one of those rare comics which actually got better over its run. The line-up of strips benefited from two mergers and the glossy covers (and new glossy centre-spreads) returned from issue 37.

The initial four strip line-up offered two must-reads (contemporary Cap. Am. and Iron Man reprints) alongside two make-weights: The Defenders (ex of RAMPAGE) and Dazzler. Really.

The demise of MARVEL ACTION added Thor and The Fantastic Four, allowing The Defenders to bow out and squeezing all the other strips to increase the overall line-up from four to five.

Bigger changes accompanied the merger of MARVEL SUPER ADVENTURES. Daredevil joined the line-up and glossy covers reinstated (coinciding with Spider-man relaunching as SPIDER-MAN TV COMIC to capitalise on the live-action TV show and the opportunity to publish glossy stills from the show as well as new-launch SCOOBY DOO).

The Captain's final months were obviously being used to test the popularity of Thor with the Thunder God being prominently featured and securing several cover slots, including the final issue. Marvel management must have already been looking ahead to their 1983 launches and the coming of the colour weeklies.

Unfortunately, I'm missing several issues (including the first. Doh!) so this isn't a complete run of covers. But it's pretty comprehensive.

ISSUE 2

March 1981

ISSUE 5

25 March 1981

ISSUE 6

1 April 1981

ISSUE 7

8 April 1981

ISSUE 8

15 April 1981

ISSUE 9

22 April 1981

ISSUE 10

29 April 1981

ISSUE 11

6 May 1981

- Best - Cover - Ever -

ISSUE 13

20 May 1981

The cover price rises a penny to 15p. And then drops back to 14p the following week. Issue 13: unlucky for some!

ISSUE 14

27 May 1981

ISSUE 15

3 June 1981

ISSUE 16

10 June 1981

ISSUE 17

17 June 1981

ISSUE 18

24 June 1981

ISSUE 19

1 July 1981

ISSUE 20

8 July 1981

ISSUE 21

15 July 1981

MARVEL ACTION merges (don't be misled by the masthead which implies that it's the reverse situation), adding Thor and the Fantastic Four. The Defenders fail to make the cut.

The cover splash may boast "The best of two comics for the price of one" but that's not entirely true, the price sneaks up a penny to 15p!

ISSUE 22

22 July 1981

ISSUE 23

29 July 1981

ISSUE 24

5 August 1981

ISSUE 25

12 August 1981

ISSUE 26

19 August 1981

ISSUE 27

26 August 1981

ISSUE 28

2 September 1981

ISSUE 29

8 September 1981

ISSUE 30

16 September 1981

This is the last issue to officially incorporate MARVEL ACTION.

ISSUE 31

23 September 1981

ISSUE 32

30 September 1981

ISSUE 33

7 October 1981

ISSUE 34

14 October 1981

HOUSE ADVERTISEMENT FOR THE RELAUNCH

14 October 1981

ISSUE 35

21 October 1981

MARVEL SUPER ADVENTURE merger announcement.

ISSUE 36

28 October 1981

Last old-format issue.

-TO BE CONTINUED -

Saturday, 21 April 2012

1981: MARVEL ACTION

MARVEL ACTION was a blink-and-you-missed-it 1981 weekly (in the Skinn format: colour covers and black'n'white interiors, all printed on cheap almost-newsprint) which shuttered after only 15 issues, despite a strong line-up of strips.

Thor and Doctor Strange transferred from the just-cancelled VALOUR (19 issues, November 1980- March 1981) whilst the ever-transient Fantastic Four had just seen their previous home, MARVEL TEAM-UP cancelled after 25 issues (September 1980 - March 1981).

Marvel Action couldn't pull the punters, transferring the FF and Thor to new homes in CAPTAIN AMERICA. The Foursome didn't stick around but the thunder god became an almost equally partner, securing the cover slot on a number of occasions as a warm-up to his 1983 solo weekly.