Black and White Wednesday: "To Slay the Savior" by Moench and Nebres

Here's a rare kung-fu team-up for all'a you Groove-ophiles! When preparing Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #29 (August 1976) for print, b&w editor John Warner found himself short one lead-off story, so he took the opportunity to answer many a Marvel martial arts fan's prayer and use the opportunity to team the mag's leading characters, Shang Chi and Iron Fist up in one far-out feature. Calling upon the experienced and speedy team of Doug Moench and Rudy Nebres (both had handled many a Shang Chi or Iron Fist feature in the past), he found himself with a not-too-shabby lead feature called "To Slay the Savior". Dig it!

Cover art by Earl Norem

Now That's Heavy, Man: "The Tangled Web" by Malmgren and Bolling

Hey, hey, hey, Groove-ophiles! If you know much about comics of the early 1970s, you know that comicbooks got pretty heavy into dealing with "issues of the day". We called the trend "relevance". Some of the most famous were the Spider-Man "drug issues", Captain America dealing with corrupt government, and, of course, the legendary (and that overused adjective honestly fits here) Green Lantern/Green Arrow series. We also had lots of mags with the JLA dealing with pollution, the Teen Titans battling the Generation Gap, Wonder Woman doing her thing for Women's Lib, and of course The Batman taking down dope dealers and muggers.

One publisher, though, did more than their fair share to bring relevance to their readers. They, too, dealt with things like pollution, the Generation Gap, Women's Lib, and yes, even muggers. That company, believe it or don't, was Archie Comics. All the mags in the Archie line touched on real issues of the day at one time or another, but a few, especially Betty and Me and Life with Archie, found ways to deal with the human condition (yes, even religion) in a gentle, semi-humorous, sincere way.

Dick Malmgren and Bob Bolling's "The Tangled Web" (Life With Archie #112) is a story that has stuck with me ever since I brought that mag home from the local King Kwik back in May, 1971. In one ten page story that angered, saddened, and, yes, educated Young Groove, I learned lessons about honesty, responsiblity, friendship, and citizenship that have remained part of me to this day.

Now THAT'S heavy, man!

Random Reads: "Over the High Side" by Shoberg, Weiss, and Reese

While rummaging through the Files of the Far-Out, Ol' Groove ran across this example of creepy-cool cycling from House of Mystery #205 (June 1972). "Over the High Side" was written by Lore Shoberg, who wrote around a couple'a dozen mystery tales for DC during the Groovy Age and sports art by the right-on but rarely seen team of Alan Weiss and Ralph Reese. It's a fun and freaky fable that you can only find in the Groovy Age, baby, and it's here just for you!

Making a Splash: Marvel Comics 40 Years Ago this Month

Greetings, Groove-ophiles! June is here! School is out! Let the summertime fun begin! To start things off right, just dig this power-house pile of sizzling splashes from mighty Marvel--the very ones we passed time cooling our heels with back in 1972!

Gerry Conway: Writer/Wayne Boring and Frank Giacoia: Artists

This was the month Stan Lee officially stepped into the Publisher's office and Roy Thomas officially took over as Editor-in-Chief, by the way, so you'll note Stan is no longer writing Fantastic Four--the mag he held onto the longest! A bittersweet start to a long and wonderfully winding road ahead for Marveldom Assembled!