Steve Ditko (1927–2018)

It's great to see that a lot of the elements that make Squirrel Girl so awesome were already present in these early appearances from the '90s and '00s. It's a shame, though, that so many of the stories in this volume rely on violence, shock and grossness for humor. Much of it would probably not be appropriate for her younger current fans and may even be a bit of a chore for older fans who only know her from the Ryan North/Erica Henderson run. I can see why Marvel wants to cash in on her show more popularity, but it is pretty misleading to put such a sweet cover on a book with so much death and gore: suicides, murders, decapitations, accidental deaths. Buyer beware. show less

Collecting the first 34 Iron Man stories when he was still a second-string character without his own book. It’s very much a product of its time full of military-industrial complex jingoism, anti-communist rhetoric, insidious racism, and blatant sexism. The science is at times laughable in retrospect, and the plots repetitive. But woven throughout are some interesting characters that you really start to engage with. Revisiting the introductions of Hawkeye and the Black Widow as villains is show more a little jarring but sets up their relationship, while the interplay between Pepper Pots and Happy Hogan is a joy. Perhaps most surprising is that even this early there is some thought provoking introspection from Tony Stark on what it is to be a hero and how Iron Man impacts his life and aspirations. show less

Although rough and still overly bombastic, as was his style at the time, the thing that sets the first ten or so issues of The Amazing Spider-Man apart is a combination of how Stan Lee introduced complexity to the super-hero story, not from the dangers of super-powered villains, although there are plenty of those, but from the dangers of Peter Parker’s home and school life. In one issue, his Aunt May needs an operation and Peter is asked to donate blood, so he worries that something in his show more bloodstream might give him away—not to mention what it might do to his aunt. At school, he is constantly picked on by Flash Thompson, and even enters into a boxing ring with him, but has to be careful not to throw too hard of a punch, given his spider-strength. It was these everyday challenges that made this comic interesting, and in contrast with the Avengers volume, a lot more engaging. The other thing that this comic had going for it is the constant dialogue from Spider-Man, a banter that would prove to also set him apart in the crowded comic marketplace. show less

I keep waiting for Stan to find his footing with the Hulk. I keep waiting for a decent story. And there's a bunch of them included here, as they're only half-length stories, ten pages in length. But it's simply endless Betty Ross handwringing, Thunderbolt Ross blustering, Major Talbot swearing Banner's a traitor and he'll get him next time, Rick Jones panicking, and the Hulk/Banner? Well, wwhen it comes to them, you never know, from issue to issue, if you're getting big brutish Hulk, or Hulk show more with Banner's brain, or some compromise of the two.

The stories are repetitive, the art, which should be good with Ditko and Kirby, is muddied by their inkers, making it subpar. Overall, just not a lot of fun to be had here. show less