Marvel Comics -- June/July 1979 (Part 2)!

Doug: Flashback 1979 is back! We'll conclude our look at the first half of Marvel's offerings in the summer of that year, and then next week as we'll begin to wrap it up with everything from Marvel Team-Up to What If?

Doug: If you'll recall, when last we looked at this logo the font was the same, but the headshots, despite being in the same location and the same general angle were by Rich Buckler. Here they appear to be from the pencil of George Perez and the pen of Joe Sinnott. Disputes?

Doug: I liked the old corner box art better. While the buyer gets a better look at the character here, it's just not as cool. I'm pretty sure the logo font is the same.

Doug: I'll confess -- I tried and tried to like this title. I don't think I ever bought a copy, but I had an older cousin who dabbled in flea markets and she usually had a few copies. This particular issue featured the Avengers. The Herb Trimpe art just killed it for me. Every time. Cool logo and corner box, though! Too bad Arthur Adams wasn't doing comics yet.

Doug: This is our second magazine, and I must say that this is the epitome of a boring logo. Good lord, but what about this would make me want to buy this book? Good thing there's a decent painting on the bottom that's cropped out.

Doug: Here we go -- a little more dynamic on the regular monthly. I really like the corner box from this period. Say, do you ever wonder how much circulation went up when the "Marvel's TV Sensation" button was on the covers?

Doug: There can't be any doubt that Gil Kane drew the corner box, can there? The logo is again, like we said for some of the 1976 logos, nothing that any shmoe with Microsoft Word couldn't create. I never read this book, and I can't even really tell you anything about John Carter. I did absolutely love Burroughs' more famous creation, who will be along later.

Doug: I definitely had this one. I always liked Marvel Spotlight, Marvel Premiere, etc. Not so much a Captain Marvel fan, but I do like the corner art. The font for the title seems so '70's, so disco, doesn't it? I am also pretty sure I didn't find the second issue of this mag. Daggone distribution in those days...

Doug: This is it for today, and it's our first reprint title. As I remarked in the opening last time, Marvel had really gone away from those sorts of books by this time. Maybe it was the prevalence of the Pocket Books reprints, the Treasury Editions, etc. that got the older stuff to newer readers. I don't know. At any rate, I love the corner box and am ho-hum on the logo. Just not inspired, and really doesn't scream out "Spider-Man!!!" to me.