The one TWO-IN-ONE cover by Kirby that won’t be in the upcoming collection (so if there’s a second volume it’ll be one of the most trivial entries on a Kirby checklist). Joe Sinnott inks, and it’s a nice action cover, and always good to see the whole FF in action, although Deathlok isn’t a character I know much about.

Published 1977

A reprint of the Torch story from STRANGE TALES #108 (1963) in this issue, where, in a theme borrowed from many of the monster/fantasy stories, the villain, a two-bit counterfeiter captured by the Torch, comes across some magic paints left by aliens while escaping from prison. His goal is then revenge, so first he recruits some fellow criminals.

Nothing establishes supremacy among villains like pulling a three-headed six-armed gorilla off the wall. I also like the giant gun crashing down through three floors. This kind of villain always gives Kirby a chance to draw some weird stuff an fun monsters. Of course the villain’s hubris proves to be his undoing.

Dick Ayers inks the 13-page story.

Published 1975

In a story reprinted from TALES OF SUSPENSE #85 (1967), Cap is hot on the trail of the Hydra agents who have kidnapped the as-yet-unnamed Sharon Carter when he finds that they’ve led him into a battle with Batroc, the leaper, and his accent of doom.

Pretty much just a big action issue from that point on, including one dialogue free scene with nine panels of Cap and Batroc exchanging blows until such time as the Hydra agents prove themselves dishonourable, earning Batroc’s scorn. A lot of great fighting panels in this story, and some good characterization in the dialogue.

Frank Giacoia inks the 10-page story.

Published 1975

The Panther, Abner Little and Princess Zanda have made their way to King Solomon’s and have to quickly escape with debating the collecting attitudes of the latter two. I especially like the Flame Chariot of Solomon that they escape in.

Following their escape, the Panther gets roped into yet another quest of the Collectors, for a lost Samurai city and its mysterious sacred water. While this is all admittedly absurd, Kirby’s obvious enthusiasm and frantic pacing do make for some good reading, kind of the paper equivalent to fast action movie.

Mike Royer inks the 17-page story and Frank Giacoia inks the cover.

Published 1977

And, just a reminder, two weeks.

Kirby kept his hand in the Iron Man series with the covers for quite a while, including this one which introduced the new armour. Still not sure who actually designed that new look. I always thought it seemed a bit more like Ditko (who pencilled the interior story) than any of the other likely suspects.

I like Mister Doll. What a name for a villain. He looks a lot like some of the Challengers villains.

The Kirby Checklist has this a Brodsky inks, which I’m not sure I agree with. There are some bits that seem like that, but parts of it definitely look like Ayers. Maybe there was some redrawing due to the new armour?

Published 1963

Kirby got a chance to draw the old Avengers in this issue reprinting #37 from shortly after he originally stopped doing the covers. Nice cover, especially with the trademark Kirby crackling energy.

Dan Adkins inked the cover, one of a handful he did during that era.

Published 1976

The visual-novel continues as he attempts to rescue his fellow Super-Normal from the out of control carousel. He fails miserably, and after a brief look at Darius Drumm in his realm, where he has Norma held, Silver Star goes out and finds Elmo Frye, another result of the Homo-Geneticus experiment, who manifests his powers as the giant Big Masai, who terrorizes various local gang lords.

A few interesting things in this issue, although the pacing of the whole series was a bit clunky. One page in this issue has 13 panels, which is an awful lot for Kirby.

Mike Royer inks the cover and 20-page story.

Published 1983

Having a few more pages to fill when comics reversed their shrinking page-count in 1980, Marvel split the Ant-Man story from TALES TO ASTONISH #40 (1963) in two issues of MGC behind post-Kirby FF reprints. This issue has the first six pages (with the last edited slightly, removing two panels to allow for the statement of ownership, which reveals that in 1980 an about-to-be-cancelled book reprinting 10-year-old FF stories could sell almost 100,000 copies a month).

This first part sets up the story of a series of mysterious truck hijackings, which Ant-Man hears about when he gets a signal transmitted from a series of ants. No really. And it gets better, to one of the most beautifully absurd scenes in a 1960s Marvel comic (and there are a lot to choose from). To get to his destination, Ant-Man shoots himself out of a gun, and has a group of ants converge to cushion his fall. Only he overshoots, almost hits a brick wall head-on, but for the quick thinking of his loyal ants.

Man, that’s just crazy. The rest of the story sets up Ant-Man’s plan to capture the hijacker, only to find himself suddenly taking ill (and riding an ant to a doctor), leaving the truck defenseless. These early Ant-Man stories aren’t the best, but they do have some great scenes, and give Kirby a chance to do some weird perspective shots and of course lots of ants.

Sol Brodsky inks this story, one of the few non-cover examples of him inking Kirby (the other more notable one being FF #3 and #4). It’s very nice, a shame he didn’t do more inking of Kirby back then. I’m only judging from reprints, so maybe I’m wrong, but he seems to be among the closest to how Kirby would have inked the work himself.

Published 1980

Just S&K covers on this part of the run of Sandman in ADVENTURE. Seems their adventures got a little more surreal as time went on, too. That’s a great looking monster, plus the little bits of business on those strange creatures are nice.

And don’t forget to back the 5th War Loan.

Published 1944

One of the most famous and oft-reprinted of the Kirby cover-only books, inked by Steve Ditko (obviously quite heavy on the Spider-Man figure, which looks like almost pure Ditko). I do love the layout, with the Torch’s flame circling around the rest of the FF and Spider-Man.

Published 1963