Monday, January 8, 2018

Marvel-ous Monday: "Die, Traitor!" by Drake, Heck, and Colletta

Greetings, Groove-ophiles! We're gonna kick off the week with one of the wildest comics of the Groovy Age (or perhaps any age)! Captain Marvel #10 (November 1968) was written by Arnold Drake with art by Don Heck and Vinnie Colletta. It's actually a pretty good action story with lots of soap opera (and lots of Carol Danvers, for those of you keeping score). So what makes it so wild? Well, how many comics have you ever read that make you have to read the whole story just so you can  find out what's happening on the page one?
Cover art by Marie Severin and John Verpoorten





















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5 comments:

  1. Rip JaggerJanuary 8, 2018 at 4:56 AM

    It's always difficult for me to separate my nostalgic adoration for these comics, but I've always thought that Heck and Colletta find a wonderful fusion of styles on this one with Vince expressing himself a bit more strongly than usual on Heck's pencils and Heck's layouts seem a bit more unusual. This is Dashing Don's last issue for a while but it's a humdinger.

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  2. keythd23January 8, 2018 at 4:02 PM

    I have to hand it to you, Groove. You can find value in comics I think are atrocious (Omega the Unknown). This Don Heck run of Captain Marvel was a low point for the character imo. But with an open mind I will re-read this issue. The cover is nice, set off by the unusual coloring. That's a good start.

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    1. The Groovy AgentJanuary 8, 2018 at 9:17 PM

      I admit, a lot of my love of these comics comes from nostalgia, but I also sincerely prefer clean, dynamic storytelling like this to most of what passes for comics these days. Never dreamed how much I'd miss the "Marvel House Style."

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    2. keythd23January 9, 2018 at 2:04 AM

      I understand. Giant-Size X-Men # 1 is my # 4 comic of all time. While not technicality a great comic I flashback to the 20 year old college student overjoyed that the also-ran X-Men were being brought back under the delineation of an artist whose talent made me drool every time I read it. I guess that's how nostalgia works,filling in the the cracks of our memories with pleasant remembrances. Some of my favorite comics, such as Firestorm # 1, surge with their own energy that stay with me year upon year.

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  3. robertf71January 8, 2018 at 10:37 PM

    I wanted to like this series, but not even nostalgia helps it. Great cover, though.

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