Marvel Spotlight issue 13 featuring The Son of Satan. There were few comics that genuinely shocked me in the 1970s but when I first saw the cover of Marvel Spotlight issue 13 featuring a pitchfork wielding picture of the devils son by John Romita I have to admit I was taken aback. Even as a then 13 year old I knew that parts of the US were deeply (fanatically in some cases) religious and was amazed that a book featuring Satan’s son as the hero ever got published. Then again I thought this book was so cool. The reality was that while the cover was excellent the actual strip itself never really hit its true potential in the same way that the Zombie, Morbius or Dracula did at Marvel, but what a great cover.
Phantom Stranger issue 22. This is a genuinely menacing cover expertly executed by Jim Aparo. I am sometimes guilty of taking Jim Aparo’s art for granted as he never seemed to turn in anything other than an excellent art job which he did here when illustrating this Len Wien written tale the “Circle of Evil “
Teen Titans issue 34. As mentioned in part one of my list of my favourite mystery/horror covers this was one of the comics that was heavily advertised on the inside cover of many DC comics back in July 1971 along with the aforementioned Detective comics issue 413 and Action Comics issue 402. Like so many of DC’s best covers from this time this was illustrated by Nick Cardy with interior pencils being supplied by George Tuska who was ably inked by Cardy himself - a surprisingly good art team.
Uncanny Tales From The Grave issue 6. In the mid 1970’s Marvel were publishing numerous horror/mystery comics most of which were all reprint and most only lasting for around 10 or so issues before descending into comic book limbo . Uncanny Tales From The Grave (originally titled simply “Uncanny Tales” for the first 2 issues) only lasted 12 issues but are well worth collecting for their covers alone. This issue from October 1974 was drawn by Larry Lieber and Tom Palmer and is my favourite of the 12 issue run.
Detective Comics isuue 425. Another excellent cover from the great Bernie Wrightson from July 1972. The story itself "The stage is set for murder" by Denny O'Neill and ilustrated by Irv Novick and Dick Giordano is your standard Batman tale more akin to a Scooby Doo cartoon (Spoiler: the ghoulish horse and carrage driver was wearing a mask).
Phantom Stranger issue 12. This cover comes from April 1971 and is from the unmistakable hands of Neal Adams. Like Phantom Stranger issue 22 (above) no word balloon are required to portray the horror of the situation. Jim Aparo provides the art on the actual strip “Marry me, Marry death” written Robert Khanigher .
And my favourite horror/mystery cover of the 1970’s is Ghost Manor issue 23 by Tom Sutton from May 1975. Charlton comics produced some really nice comics over the years featuring the early work of artists like John Byrne, Joe Staton, Don Newton and Mike Zeck. But as far as horror strips were concerned the stand out artist for me at Charlton was always Tom Sutton. He of course also drew for DC, Warren and other companies and provided some stunning art on Planet of the Apes and Morbuis the living Vampire at Marvel. But his Charlton covers were always a treat to behold. A sadly missed and truly underrated artist.
I was probably about seven years old when I walked into my local newsagents in Cambuslang (near Glasgow) with my pocket money firmly he...
Following on from my last post featuring some of my favourite Marvel comic book covers from 1973, I thought I would show some of DC's ...
Nearly a half-century on I still consider 1973 to be the year that cemented my destiny in becoming a lifetime comic book fan. It was a yea...
Mephisto was already Marvel's version of Satan so introducing Satan too was rather confusing. What is the relationship between them? Is Mephisto meant to be equal to Satan or junior to him? And if Satan exists in the Marvel Universe what about God and Jesus?
ReplyDeleteAccording to Marvel Mephisto’s realm is not the biblical hell so I assume he Is not the devil. But the whole Mephisto , Devil, Satan thing is overly complicated not only in the world of Marvel but in religion itself. Seemingly (and I only have limited to zero knowledge on religious issues like this other than what I read read)) in Roman Catholicism Satan is not the devil he /it is just another demon. The entity we call the “devil “ is Lucifer. Satan is very evil but is not the most powerful of the demons, the most powerful by far is Lucifer followed by Beelzebub, Leviathan, Asmodeus etc etc. Mephisto was a character that appeared in “ Faust” by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe in the 1800’s in that book Mephisto is Satan but is not the Biblical devil. But then again Mephisto in Marvel isn't Satan so your right wahts going on here!!
ReplyDeleteThen again in the recent “Spirit of the Ghost Rider” comic Marvel say that Mephisto is the actual devil despite also restating that Mephisto’s realm in not the biblical hell. In summery Colin I have no idea personally I just thought he was a powerful demon that looks like what people think the devil looks like which I think was Stan’s original (and the best) idea. As to God and Jesus I have no idea how they are represented in the Marvel universe. I seem to recall in the 1970s Jesus appeared in Ghost Rider to repel Satan (who it was later revealed was Mephisto disguised as Satan) but the story was quickly rewritten to say Jesus was an illusion. I wait to be corrected on all the above (a little knowledge is a bad thing lol)
And of course, Mephisto is a shortened version of Mephistopheles, which is the full name of the character, whoever the hell (see what I did there?) he's meant to be. I'm pretty sure I had Detective Comics #425 back in the day, but not any more. It's one I'll have to look out for - great cover.
ReplyDeleteAnother great selection, McScotty. Those Phantom Stranger covers by first Adams and then Aparo himself were so compelling that I just HAD to get the comics. I have no idea if DC or Marvel still produce light supernatural comics these days, but it's a genre that is due for a comeback, I think.
ReplyDeleteThe Phantom Stranger comic did indeed have some stunning covers for most, if not all of its run. I only ever had one issue of PS back in the day (issue 29) but I have been picking up a few issue here and there over the years (including the issues noted here) when I see them at a good price - annoyingly though I lost or misplaced my original Phantom Stranger issue 29 a few years ago.
DeleteThe person who Isabella intended to be Jesus was actually changed to a demon, McS, so I suppose his 'Jesus' look was an illusion, but the way you've written it, you make it sound as though Ghost Rider imagined him.
ReplyDeleteWell Kid, as I said in the last line in my reply to Colin "I await to be corrected" and I have been :)
ReplyDelete