That was then: Thor

Monday, June 12, 2023

Favourite Covers: The Mighty Thor - Back issue purchases - Adams, Kirby, Buscema

There are only a few comic from my childhood/teenage years that remain on my wants list of comic books that I either used to own or missed out on the first time around. Thor issue 180 from 1970 (cover and art by Neal Adams) was one of those comics that I always wanted but never managed to find. That all changed last week when I managed to find the above issue at a very reasonable price in Glasgow. I now only require to pick up a copy of Thor 181, the second part of this Neal Adams /Stan Lee Thor collaboration to complete my small but perfectly formed Thor wants list. Below as some of my favourite US Thor comics that I have managed to pick up from back issue shops, charity shops and jumble sales over the years:

My first US Thor comic was the above issue 205 ( Cover by Gil Kane & Frank Giacoia) cover dated November 1972, which I purchased around March 1973. I still have my original copy but it is badly ripped. I picked up this nice cents copy in a specialist shop in Edinburgh for £2.

Thor 204 (cover by John Buscema & Joe Sinnott) Cover dated October 1972. I purchased this issue in the same newsagents as number 205 around June 1973. It wasn’t uncommon at this time for US comics to appear on sale out of order and sometimes many months apart. I lost my copy many years ago and managed to find this replacement copy recently in Glasgow.