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THE MiGHTY MARVEL CHECKLiST: WEEK 16

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SATURDAY 12th NOVEMBER 1988

On this day back in 1988 the 23rd edition of Marvel UK’s The Real Ghostbusters and the very special 192nd issue of The Transformers and Action Force were unleashed upon the younger members of the public, their covers by Anthony Williams and Stephen Baskerville respectively.

Why was the 192nd Transformers so special? Okay, I’ll admit it was special for me. This was the very first issue of the weekly I bought back at the time after reading that year’s Christmassy Winter Special, although I didn’t get it until the following week alongside #193. As a first issue this one had a fascinating story for young me involving Headmasters disguised as humans and actual human bounty hunters tracking down Autobots. It also featured one of the toys I’d end up with that Christmas, Sizzle, who produced sparks out his rear end… um, I mean out of his exhaust in car mode.

In The Real Ghostbusters there was a massive moment for fans of two of the characters involved. Sort of. Janine finally got a snog off of Egon, which of course was really only part of a haunted dream. Humour comics giant John Geering was also the main artist for the issue, which only added to the overall laughs. Meanwhile, in this week’s checklist the Thundercats comic certainly doesn’t sound like the relaunched comic for a “younger audience”, with what appears to be an epic showdown.

But the two biggest highlights for Marvel UK followers surely had to be the humungous Captain Britain paperback and that premiere issue again. Captain Britain never appealed to me as a kid as I incorrectly saw him as a poor man’s Captain America. In recent years I’ve heard nothing but good things though. His entry also reminds me of those days when it felt like the entire population of the UK only had Nostalgia and Comics to go to for any comics-related events.

Finally for this week’s checklist, and finally in the eyes of fans who had long awaited it, there’s Death’s Head own monthly comic. I know what you’re thinking, didn’t he get this coveted ‘Don’t Miss’ spot last week? Indeed he did, but if anyone deserved it, he did. Or perhaps he ‘advised’ Marvel UK he wanted another week at the top of the league. This made me go and buy it with my pocket money that week (this was my first checklist) but for whatever reason it was months before I read it! The entire run has already been covered on the blog and this first issue was one of the very best of his ten issues.

No adverts this week (none I haven’t already covered anyway) so all that’s left for me to say is if anyone had been lucky enough as a kid to check off all five titles this week they must’ve been very happy indeed!

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SATURDAY 5th NOVEMBER 1988

I always enjoyed stories with Janine Melnitz at the centre of them in Marvel UK’s The Real Ghostbusters, but as much as Brian Williamson’s and Cam Smith’s cover excited me when I picked it up from the newsagent as a kid, right now that Art Wetherell and Stephen Baskerville cover to The Transformers and Action Force is the business!

Skullgrin battling his outer Pretender shell? What’s not to enjoy here? A much maligned story by fans took things up a notch and even included the return of my favourite human character (as in, the one I loved to hate), Circuit Breaker. This was also the final issue before I originally became a reader. What an issue to miss out on. Well, that’s been rectified now, that’s what counts. But it wasn’t like The Real Ghostbusters were slacking for ten-year-old me this week.

For the only time in all of Ghostbusters mythos we got the origin story of Slimer thanks to some time travelling on Peter’s part. It seems the green spud was a food-loving (surprise, surprise) King who beheaded jesters who didn’t make him laugh. Although, Egon does say this is only one of his past incarnations, just in case the cartoon ever had their own version (they never did). There’s also a very Fleetway-like strip that sees a baby ghost transmogrifying the team into toddlers, drawn by John Geering no less.

But the big news this week was clear for all to see. The first of many yellow boxes pointing out the big comic for the week was given to the premiere issue of Death’s Head, of course. It was a superb debut, full of action and plenty of comedy. I have a distinct memory of this issue and reading it in bed while off sick from school, such was the impact it made even my greying memory cells remember that. But he wasn’t the only highlight this week 37 years ago.

Action Force had returned to The Transformers and #6 of their own comic was “still on sale” (a space to fill on the checklist?) and I never knew the UK comic had their own exclusive prequel to the cartoon movie. I must check that out sometime. There was also plenty of drama in Dragon’s Claws #6 for Tanya (Dragon’s wife) and Mercy, so it’s unforgivable neither of these brilliant female characters got any mention in the checklist.

As you can see Death’s Head had certainly arrived! The front cover to his first issue made for the perfect advert across much of the publisher’s range and Transformers even ran a little extra half-page featurette. However, judging by the introduction the advert was probably meant to have been the strip version, a brilliant one-page tale you’ll see soon in this series.

Finally, celebrating 25 years of Doctor Who? The series I watched the 60th anniversary specials of a couple of years ago? Oh man, talk about feeling old! I do love writing this blog. I know it’s dedicated to classic comics, but ho boy there can be times when it suddenly hits me just how much time has passed. The fact it’s a Doctor Who advert that’s the culprit this time is not lost on me. I think I need a lie down. See you next week!

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SATURDAY 29th OCTOBER 1988

Neither The Transformers and Visionaries nor The Real Ghostbusters marked the spooky season in 1988. Well, the Ghostbusters no more than every other week. Martin Griffiths’ cover for the latter sees the introduction of that rare thing for that comic, a returning villain. While Stephen Baskerville’s cover to Transformers marks the arrival of a story often mocked by fans online, unfairly in my eyes.

Giant sentient robotic aliens from outer space that can transform into Earth vehicles and weaponry. And now, some could also wrap themselves up inside a monstrous outer shell for… disguise? Some fans saw a story where a Decepticon Pretender monster became a Hollywood star (taking the place of a special effect) as silly. Really? Have you read the premise of the comic and the Pretenders? Lighten up and stop taking things so seriously, it’s actually a fun story and I became somewhat fond of the lumbering Skullgrin.

Elsewhere in the issue Visionaries comes to an emotional (for me) end on a cliffhanger, which you can check out in the full review at the link at the bottom of this post. But topping that is the cliffhanger to Combat Colin: “Next week: Mrs. Frumpy vs. The Robot Penguin!!” Meanwhile in The Real Ghostbusters, that aforementioned villain is Ponquadragor, a being that’s been hunting Egon ever since he was a child. A demonic force who’d eventually become a semi-regular visitor and a pal of the team!

What else did comic fans have to choose from this week?

Not much apparently, with Dragon’s Claws #5 from week 11 making a reappearance on the checklist, although it was an important issue with a certain new comic set to be launched any time now. You can check out this fantastic issue in its own OiNK Blog review, link below. Then, the entry for the now-fortnightly Thundercats reminded us that the hyped merge between it and Galaxy Rangers was already over.

On to our adverts and Fred Flintstone et all were very happy about their new larger comic. In reality it had been printed on smaller paper up to this point and was now going to be the same size as the rest of Marvel UK’s output, probably to save on pricing costs rather than anything else. It was kind of like the comics version of “Better Recipe” on confectionary; better for the company’s bottom line.

I’ll admit I’ve never read Captain Britain. Growing up in Northern Ireland in the 80s and 90s, by the time I was a teenager and the target audience the UK’s flag had other connotations that some friends of mine saw as the opposite of heroic. They never said anything against Captain Britain, but my own mind seemed to want to stay away from it for that reason when I’d see his graphic novels advertised in the 90s.

As an adult though, reading this advert it sounds like a fun premise, and one that I clearly and unfairly got the wrong impression of all those decades ago. It’s certainly got a great creative team. On that note we come to the end of this week’s trip back in time with Marvel UK. It’s great to see so many of you enjoying these on socials, long may that continue (because the series is going to continue for a long time whether you like it or not).

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SATURDAY 22nd OCTOBER 1988

The Real Ghostbusters tied themselves in with the free drinks offer most Marvel UK comics ran this month in 1988, the cover drawn by Martin Griffiths and in The Transformers and Visionaries Jeff Anderson’s cover foretold of dark stories to come. Exciting times! Welcome to the next Mighty Marvel UK Checklist!

Inside this edition of The Real Ghostbusters is the only place (comics or cartoon) you’ll find any kind of official origin story for their pet ghost, Slimer as we find out who he was in life. As we approach spooky season Spengler’s Spirit Guide tries to explain the origins of Halloween and how it’s when the separation between dimensions is at its weakest. While it’s very funny it completely ignores the recurring villain from the cartoon, Samhain the Spirit of Halloween. Missed a trick (and treat) there!

In The Transformers the Winter Special Collected Comics 11 is mentioned in the editorial. It was the edition of the comic that would ultimately turn me into a fan and ignite my love of these characters. This is also the issue when Megatron kills the time-travelling Cyclonus 20 years before he’s created, setting in motion the events leading to the epic Time Wars. We even see the very fabric of space begin to tear right at the end of the story here. Oh, and no, you couldn’t win a box of Ready Brek, the prize was a clock radio.

Just the four comics this week, with the latest monthly edition of Action Force tying itself in with the newly released home video of Action Force: The Movie, which famously changed the death of a character to a deep coma after the reaction of kids to Optimus Prime being killed off in The Transformers: The Movie. Also, does the Flintstones and Friends comic have any actual comic content? Judging from the checklists it’s hard to tell.

Last week I mentioned how I might just have to add the Marvel Bumper Comic to the blog’s list of real time read throughs after I found out Count Duckula had joined its ranks. In this week’s comics he also stars in an advert for his own Winter Special. Even though Duckula was a British cartoon it was Marvel US’ imprint Star Comics that produced a strip instead. In his natural home there was no regular comic with original UK content, just imports of the American strips into specials and the Bumper Comic. Surely a missed opportunity, especially given how funny the UK writing team for the Ghostbusters could be.

This blog series really seems to have fired the ol’ memory cells of readers out there because there’s been a great reaction on social media. I post the checklists and adverts there to get the conversations going, but of course you can follow along here instead where you also have access to all of the previous entries in one place. (Just click on the link below to the menu screen.) I’ll be back in seven days with even more. There’s plenty to come!

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SATURDAY 15th OCTOBER 1988

Were you thirsty on the morning of Saturday 15th October 1988? You could’ve grabbed a free can of Tango with your copy of Marvel UK’s The Transformers and Visionaries #188! You could’ve used it to cool yourself off from Jeff Anderson’s hot cover, or after lumping the hefty 19th issue of the publisher’s The Real Ghostbusters all the way home.

There were no extra pages behind Brian Williamson and Dave Elliott’s cover but the whole issue was printed on matte paper that had a lovely look (giving the false impression of the paper really soaking up the solid black inks) and heavier feel to it. Inside, there was a musical strip starring The Ghostie Boys backed up with a look at spiritual musical instruments in Spengler’s Spirit Guide, such as the Nullify Flute which could cancel out all music but offered “no protection against Tiffany”.

Jeff’s cover depicted a scene from Firebug, a one-off story needed for scheduling reasons but which (like most such tales in Transformers) was great. It had an original and honest-to-gosh happy ending that raised a smile, accompanied by a reader on the letters page saying such UK strips were intelligent while the American ones were stupid! Dreadwind scolds him for being harsh, “After all, we do see fit to showcase their stories in our Transformers comic.” How kind. So, what else was up for grabs?

Thundercats (already minus the Galaxy Rangers) changed up a bit, with an emphasis on appealing to younger readers with the extras first, strip second, and the beginning of what seemed like endless frequency changes. So Count Duckula joined the Marvel Bumper Comic? Now that’s yet another reason to add it to the (long) list of potential real time read throughs on the OiNK Blog.

Having now started watching Doctor Who from the (very) beginning I can better appreciate the magazine’s focus on classic tales such as Keys of Marinus here, complete with its scuba gear-wearing ‘aliens’, although an interview with my first ever Doctor would’ve sealed the deal for me anyway. I never realised Alf’s monthly lasted even this long and below is the advert of his I mentioned last week that made us giggle while not actually featuring the titular star.

This was typical of a few of the adverts for his comic which told us nothing about it but did include a surreal joke showcasing the humour we could find inside (I assume). It may sound strange nowadays, but there was no regular Marvel UK comic starring the classic Super Heroes at the time. After Spider-Man and Zoids and before The Incredible Hulk Presents fans had to make do with specials and annuals, such as the one advertised here.

Next week a new addition to the Marvel fold mentioned above gets their own winter special, and I’m aghast I never picked it up! You can find out who I missed out on when their advert appears here in seven days alongside another checklist. Until then, why don’t you let me know if you remember reading any of the issues above by leaving a comment here or on the socials below? G’wan!

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