tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post7630161570627298879..comments2024-03-19T10:41:35.976-05:00Comments on Bronze Age Babies: An Obscure Silver Surfer Story: The AnswerDoughttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04248324005584963229noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-30826405122793944302013-03-08T23:50:08.579-06:002013-03-08T23:50:08.579-06:00I remember the Epic Illustrated #1 issue, which th...I remember the Epic Illustrated #1 issue, which this came from. It's Heavy Metal with a Marvel spin. I liked the art but the premise of it seemed long winded. It looked like a chapter in an unfinished graphic novel. I never got into the surfer until much later. <br /><br />I loved the art and it was the frist time issues were published on good paper. The Hulk Magazine made this change and improved it's circulation and readership dramatically . <br /><br /><br />Epic and this story was a mixed bag. It was an experiment that did better when it became it's own comic line under the editor Archie Goodwin's guidance. <br /><br />The stories were better developed under their own monthly titles. I do remember Dread Star and it was much better in color and in a monthly format. <br /><br />But I digress, as much as I didn’t like this Silver Surfer story, the Silver Surfer was a concept that should have been done in a full color magazine format. <br /><br />I wish Epic Magazine could have continued. However the stories were too uneven in quality. On the flip side of the coin, Marvel used that same full color magazine format for Star Trek The Motion Picture. Even though the art by Klaus Janson was cartoony, I preferred that over the newsprint comic book that failed to get Star Trek fandom interested. <br />Fantastic Four Fan 4evernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-67866516244688626342013-03-08T22:39:21.863-06:002013-03-08T22:39:21.863-06:00William, just post the pic on the 'net and lin...William, just post the pic on the 'net and link to it. (Yahoo album or something similar, etc..).<br /><br />It's what I liked about being a Mego Museum member, I could post pictures, then link to them in my post.david_bhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00218727673816200051noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-54080457785735494152013-03-08T21:06:47.065-06:002013-03-08T21:06:47.065-06:00Glad to see this forgotten gem of a Silver Surfer ...Glad to see this forgotten gem of a Silver Surfer story!<br /><br />Yes, Nebres' inks do overpower Buscema's pencils here; Big John probably regarded this like Alcala's inks - too overpowering! However, in this story the artwork looks great. Maybe they had extra time to do this - perhaps they had more time to do good pencils and inking without having to face the Dreaded Doomsday Deadline as in their four-colour comics counterpart?<br /><br />Stan might not be a great poet, but I think he got his message across without being too preachy - many times you look very hard for meaning outside of your life, but ultimately you have to find it within yourself.<br /><br />Epic was under the radar for me here in T & T - it was available, but I generally stuck to the usual comics format.<br /><br /><br /><br />- Mike 'wish Warren Publishing was still around' from Trinidad & Tobago.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-23351145587677490552013-03-08T14:55:38.547-06:002013-03-08T14:55:38.547-06:00Great art, but that's an odd, frankly unsatisf...Great art, but that's an odd, frankly unsatisfying tale... Lee tried too hard to be profound at times. While it is always good to stretch oneself, he didn't have the gifts of a real poet. <br /><br />Pretty-looking though, even if it the inks overpowered Buscema's pencils. You can't argue with the finished product.<br /><br />Inkstained Wretchnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-75525196753264471802013-03-08T13:43:24.727-06:002013-03-08T13:43:24.727-06:00Almuric! Right, that was the swordplay epic. I did...Almuric! Right, that was the swordplay epic. I didn't care for it, but there was always something for everyone in Epic. It covered a wide range of genres, often featuring more sex and violence than the regular comics. <br /><br />As for Nebres: I met him at a convention in a NJ mall back in the '70s. I asked him to draw a Dr. Strange (for a price); when he finished the requested pencil drawing, he offered to (for a price, of course) ink it. It took him quite a while, but the result, which I still have, is gorgeous. <br /><br />I can't paste a picture here, can I . . . ?William Prestonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07896164917625191919noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-80497815882374678162013-03-08T12:50:09.157-06:002013-03-08T12:50:09.157-06:00Love that splash page! It really draws me in and m...Love that splash page! It really draws me in and makes me want to read the story.<br /><br />The inkers on Buscema were always a big topic of discussion at the JB yahoo group. I initially didn't like Big John inking himself, but then it grew on me, and I couldn't get enough! Savage Sword 73 and 61 were favorites, along with a partially inked story in 70. There were also some great covers around issue 96 of the regular Conan series. <br /><br />I'm not a big fan of Nebres, as his inking often looks to me like springs covering the bodies--too much. This Surfer story inking is all right.Garettnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-4482415864160195552013-03-08T11:16:32.166-06:002013-03-08T11:16:32.166-06:00Epic was a GREAT magazine, like Heavy Metal but mo...Epic was a GREAT magazine, like Heavy Metal but more reader friendly and less pretentious. With Archie Goodwin as editor it was much more story based, had great paper and printing, and superb artwork. That Surfer story was obviously intended to ease Marvel readers into the brave new world of Adult Fantasy and, yeah, it's overwritten, but that's Stan for you. You can't knock the art.<br /><br />It did get a few raspberries in the letters pages though, I seem to remember.<br /><br />As for Epic, honestly, next time you see any copies at cons, buy them immediately. Just off the top of my head, as well as Metamorphosis Odyssey, you had great serials like Tim Conrad doing Robert E. Howard's <br />' Almuric' ( John Carter as rewritten by REH ), Rick Veitch's 'Abraxus & The Earthman ' ( Moby Dick in space ), Carl Potts ' Last Of The Dragons', Craig Russell doing Elric AND John Byrne's ' Last Galactus Story 'as well as one-off strips by Howard Chaykin, Barry Smith, John Bolton, Mike Kaluta, Vaughn Bode & Neal Adams to name but a few. It really is that good.<br />pete doreehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17004574271734256770noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-84323018260604659672013-03-08T09:16:41.102-06:002013-03-08T09:16:41.102-06:00Oops! Meant to type 'Rudy', not 'Ruby&...Oops! Meant to type 'Rudy', not 'Ruby' - must've been thinking of the 'b' in his surname.Kidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07224781868125924337noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-29061711991632053742013-03-08T08:54:13.618-06:002013-03-08T08:54:13.618-06:00Great point, Kid. From all I've read of Big J...Great point, Kid. From all I've read of Big John, he hated anyone working over him with the exception of Sal, and himself. As to the latter, both Karen and I tend to agree that we'd prefer someone other than the Master himself doing the embellishing.<br /><br />And think about all of the great ones who "covered" Buscema -- Palmer, Sinnott, Alcala, Ayers, Chan, Roussos, and on and on. Just some stellar combinations, and each in their own way uniquely pleasurable to the eye.<br /><br />DougDoughttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04248324005584963229noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-57274819185983691312013-03-08T08:43:29.987-06:002013-03-08T08:43:29.987-06:00It looks like an interesting tale, sure enough. I&...It looks like an interesting tale, sure enough. I'll have a look for that Visionaries volume the next time I'm in my local Forbidden Planet comics shop.<br /><br />I would be interesting to know what Big John thought of Ruby's inks over his pencils. Apparently, Mr B didn't care for Alfredo Alcala's inks over some of his Conan stuff, which astounds me. I thought the combination was brilliant.Kidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07224781868125924337noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-10249366493482607852013-03-08T07:33:19.532-06:002013-03-08T07:33:19.532-06:00You guys are exactly right -- I certainly did conf...You guys are exactly right -- I certainly did confuse a Surfer ongoing feature with Byrne's Galactus serial. My apologies.<br /><br />Epic came out during my hiatus, so any issues I'd have seen at the newsstand would have been circa 1984-85. At that point I was worried about catching up on comic books and didn't really give this magazine a try -- sounds like it was my loss.<br /><br />That being said, the few times lately that I've gone to a convention I've been drawn to dealers who sell the Marvel magazines from the Bronze Age, such as Planet of the Apes. It's like a whole 'nother world that I'm on the outside looking in!<br /><br />DougDoughttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04248324005584963229noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-4190694044693093262013-03-08T07:08:43.705-06:002013-03-08T07:08:43.705-06:00Thanks for posting this; the story actually appear...Thanks for posting this; the story actually appears less interesting than the art. It's quite lovely, and I don't mind the fact that Nebres seemed to overpower Buscema at places.<br />I only read a few issues of Epic, so I'm no expert, but I'm pretty sure William (Preston) is right: there was no regular Surfer feature. You might be mixing that up with Byrne's Last Galactus Story that Rip mentioned - as far as I know, it ran in the last 10 or so issues of Epic and remains unfinished to this day.<br />By the way, based on the few issues I've seen, I have to agree with Rip: Epic was a much more solidly entertaining magazine than Heavy Metal.Edo Bosnarnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-47465168745049412092013-03-08T06:42:29.380-06:002013-03-08T06:42:29.380-06:00That Jim Starlin saga dubbed "Metamorphosis O...That Jim Starlin saga dubbed "Metamorphosis Odyssey" I believe eventually morphed into his relatively long-running Dreadstar comic which Epic Comics ran for some time. I agree, that it was a bit strange and distant. <br /><br />The saga that first jumped into my mind about Epic Illustrated was the long-running John Byrne epic tale about Galactus that ultimately remained unfinished. It was for a time a very nice counterpoint to the work he did in the regular Fantastic Four book. <br /><br />Epic was a solid entertainment, a bit more approachable than Heavy Metal which could, depending on the issue be totally incomprehensible to this reader. <br /><br />Another highlight was John Bolton's artwork on Marada the She-Wolf, I think she was called. The series was all about the artwork for me, and to a lesser extent the story despite a master wordsmith like Archie Goodwin in charge. <br /><br />Archie even did some artwork if memory serves, and I rather liked it. <br /><br />Rip OffRip Jaggerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09936426877024852134noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5293155946761960913.post-44766080726297068122013-03-08T06:28:13.638-06:002013-03-08T06:28:13.638-06:00I remember this issue--and I'm pretty sure it&...I remember this issue--and I'm pretty sure it's upstairs in a box, along my other Epic Illustrated mags. I don't recall the Surfer as a recurring feature, but there was a (black-and-white) Jim Starlin story that ran across many issues. (It looked awesome, but the story left me cold, and it advanced slowly.) There was also a barbarian/swordplay epic that ran continuously. I enjoyed the strange assortment of writers and artists.<br /><br />Now I'm going to have to dig out those issues.William Prestonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07896164917625191919noreply@blogger.com