Reviewed Comics:
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Daredevil #5:The Mysterious Masked Matador!
Cover Date: Dec 1964 | Review: 2 StarsThis issue starts with Daredevil looking for the Matador, who is “the greatest threat to Law in order in years.” While the astute reader may find the thought of our hero questionable, it works to build up the tension to the pending conflict. They first meet in the streets, where Daredevil tries to intervene and…
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Tales of Suspense #60:The Army of Assassins Strikes!
Cover Date: Dec 1964 | Review: 3.25 StarsThis issue is about Zemo planning to defeat Captain America by laying a trap where he will fight an army of assassins while believing it to be a staged demonstration. In this case, it is Captain America doing a demonstration for a charity benefit and to make people aware of the importance of physical fitness…
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Tales of Suspense #60:Suspected of Murder!
Cover Date: Dec 1964 | Review: 2.5 StarsThis picks up after the end of the last, with Iron Man unable to leave his armor for fear of dying. Trapped in his armor, he has to be just Iron Man and feign that Stark is gone and left him in Charge. However, Pepper and Happy are suspicious, leading to tentions growing and a…
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Strange Tales #127:The Mystery Villain
Cover Date: Dec 1964 | Review: 1.25 StarsWhat starts with a race turns into an adventure involving a race, but I am getting ahead of myself. This issue begins with the three male members of the Fantastic Four engaged in an airborne drag race of sorts, with Torch flying while Thing and Mr. Fantastic fly vehicles. However, things go astray when The…
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Amazing Spider-Man #18:The end of Spider-Man
Cover Date: Nov 1964 | Review: 2.5 StarsIn this issue, Peter Parker deals with his sick Aunt May and the repercussions of leaving the fight against the Green Goblin to be by her side in the last issue. The issue starts with prior foes and other Marvel heroes sharing their views as they learn the news of what happened. Story This issue…
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X-Men #8:Unus, the Untouchable!
Cover Date: Nov 1964 | Review: 4 StarsWith Professor X gone and on the start of his mission (That we will see more of next month) we have Cyclops leading the team. At the unset of the story we have the X-Men undergoing a training session. When compete the team is given leave and Beast and Iceman take off to Greenwich Village,…
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Sgt. Fury And His Howling Commandos #12:When a Howler turns Traitor!
Cover Date: Nov 1964 | Review: 4.25 StarsFrom the start we know we are in for a misdirect. It is more likely that no one is a traitor nor does an Howler Desert and I am glad to know as I read the story, the truth of the ‘why’ is not kept from the reader even if it is kept from the…
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Avengers #10:The Avengers Break Up!
Cover Date: Nov 1964 | Review: 2.25 StarsThis story starts with a bit of training mainly for Captain America against the other avengers, where we watch and see that he is getting better at holding his own for longer. Meanwhile the Masters of Evil wile meeting to discuss their prior defeat are visited by a traveler from another time named Immortus. After…
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Fantastic Four #32:Death Of A Hero
Cover Date: Nov 1964 | Review: 3.75 StarsOne might think that the subtitle is just an attention-grabbing ploy typical of comic books of the silver age. But in this case, you would be wrong. The Story does live up to the “Death Of A Hero” Title. Now as for the other mystery of the story, Guessing who the Invincible Man is, that…
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Tales to Astonish #61:Now Walks the Android
Cover Date: Nov 1964 | Review: 2 StarsThis Ant-Man and wasp tale features Egghead whom we last seen in issue 57. In this issue he escapes from Jail, and sets out to get revenge on Giant-Man for besting him. As a villion goes it is more about proving himself the superior intellect then anything else at this point for the antagonist. This…
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Journey Into Mystery #111:The Secret of Sigurd
Cover Date: Dec 1964 | Review: 3.5 StarsIn this tale, we see Loki again attempt to get at Thor through manipulation instead of direct assault. We see how well Loki can plan, read people and push things his way as he gets Thor and Balder to join him on a shortcut through Sigurd’s forest, knowing that he can get the God of…
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Journey Into Mystery #111:The Power of the Thunder God!
Cover Date: Dec 1964 | Review: 4.5 StarsWhile the old saying “don’t judge a book by the cover” should still apply, this month, I find myself called to at least start my review by doing just that. After all, the cover Art is part of the comic, even perhaps one of the most important (selling) pieces. But due to the placement of…
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Journey Into Mystery #110:Every Hand Against Him
Cover Date: Nov 1964 | Review: 4 StarsThis story starts with Thor hunting for an evil he senses somewhere within the city, although he is unsure what the evil is or where it is. Failing to find it, he returns to his office and his identity as Dr. Don Blake. Meanwhile, in disguise, Loki pays the bail to free The Cobra and…
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Journey Into Mystery #110:The Defeat of Odin!
Cover Date: Nov 1964 | Review: 1.25 StarsSo for those who have been following the past few months after my return, you might have expected to see something different after last week—perhaps, at a minimum, the first story from this issue instead of my jumping right to the second. Well, the first story is part one of two, and in a desire…
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Journey into Mystery #109:Banished from Asgard
Cover Date: Oct 1964 | Review: 2.5 StarsToday we start by finding Thor, who in this story is not yet 20, being banished from Asgard for daring to fight a Duel against Odin’s wishes. In a similar fashion to Journey Into Mystery #107, Odin’s mind seems set, and he is unwilling to heed the advice of his subjects to reconsider. But perhaps,…
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Journey into Mystery #108:Trapped by the Trolls
Cover Date: Sep 1964 | Review: 4.75 Starsthis month we follow who is at first an unknown asgardian into the kindom of the dewarfs where he is captured and given to the Trolls as a slave. This however quickly proves to be a ruse and a plan to free the slaves from the Trolls. It also serves as a message ending with…
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Journey into Mystery #107:Balder Must Die
Cover Date: Aug 1964 | Review: 3.25 StarsIf there is one thing Loki cannot stand, it is anyone being held in Odin’s favor, at least more than him. Jealousy for Balder is the source of the conflict in this issue, and despite the title suggesting it features Balder, in my opinion the protagonist (even if a villous one) is Loki. In this…
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Journey into Mystery #106:Balder the Brave
Cover Date: Jul 1964 | Review: 3 StarsFor this “Tales Of Asgard” story, we have Balder the Brave, who appears before Odin is questioned about why he deserted the fight. It is quickly revealed it was to save a bird that fell from the nest. This this Odin sentences him to the test of Mortal death! Even with the begging and petitioning…
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Journey Into Mystery #105:When Heimdall Failed
Cover Date: Jun 1964 | Review: 4.5 StarsWhile the previous story in the Tales of Asgard series was anticlimactic, this one, from the moment you read the title “When Heimdall Failed” offers promise and suspense. This story is true to the title; it is of the hero failing and the consequences he and Asgard face for that failure. Perhaps as importantly, it…
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Journey into Mystery #104:Heimdal Guardian Of The Mystic Rainbow Bridge!
Cover Date: May 1964 | Review: 2.75 StarsIn this issue, we get the origin of Heimdall as the guardian of the rainbow bridge. But is this story dramatic and everything we would hope for it to be, or is it a biography that, while having value, falls short of what is promised on the introductory page? Story The story starts with Heimdall…
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Journey Into Mystery #103:Thor’s Mission to Mirmir!
Cover Date: Apr 1964 | Review: 4.75 StarsAs I wrote my review for the Tales of Asgard backup in Journey Into Mystery #103, I decided to start with praise and a warning. First, I will praise this tale from the start; it proves to be an enjoyable read that I will get to below. The reason for this high praise in the…
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Journey Into Mystery #102:Death comes to Thor
Cover Date: Mar 1964 | Review: 4.25 StarsThis tale, like the last two, features the “boyhood of Thor” although he is now “at the age of eighteen” per the opening page. In this adventure, Thor learns from the fates that he must meet death to win Odin’s enchanted hammer. But we must continue reading this fateful tale to know what that means.…
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Journey Into Mystery #101:The Invasion of Asgard!
Cover Date: Feb 1964 | Review: 4.75 StarsIn this five-page story, we have the Gods of Asgard preparing for an invasion by the “forces of Evil” Thor, however being a kid is sent off by Heimdall. However Loki informs his brother Thor that he knows of a secret hole in Asgard’s defenses that needs protecting. Story We learn that Loki is the…
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Journey Into Mystery #100:The storm Giants
Cover Date: Jan 1964 | Review: 3.75 StarsWe started with Buri and glanced over Borr before moving to two stories that feature Odin. Now, we have moved on to the featurette staring a young Thor. In this tale, we follow him on his mission to accomplish deeds of valor so that he may one day inherit Odin’s enchanted battle hammer. Story More…