Like DC's Swamp Thing I have always admired Marvel's Man-Thing, albeit from a distance. I'm not well-up on him at all and used to get the two Things confused in my mind.
Which Thing came first? Man or Swamp?
I remember in 2005 I went to the US on holiday with friends and on one of our trips out we stopped at a comics shop in New Jersey in Cartaret I think - and bought four or five copies of Man-Thing comics in a sequence. I wanted them for my toy and sci-fi stall at a toy and comics fair that was coming up at Leeds Poly.
I may still have the comics somewhere. I'm really not sure now but it was great fun buying them at the time and I planned to man-up and make an effort to get to know the Man-Thing better.
I never did.
Did you?
Swamp came first in about 1970/71 and Man Thing a few years later I think. Swampy was in my mind more of a Frankenstein horror strip and I loved it but Man Thing was, to my young mind, hard to follow because Steve Gerber who (I think) was the main writer was part of the New York art crowd and filled his scripts with satire and intentionally ridiculous chracters and situations which were very usa-based and most of it went right over my head to be honest. He also wrote a lot of Defenders issues and turned it from one of my favourite series to one that I couldn't really understand because he would write characters "off-model" to suit his political or satirical tastes so it became less of a super hero book and more of a writers statement. I retrospect his work was way ahead of it's time and he was a groundbreaker for that style of writing but to the young version of me who just wanted simple superhero stories...it wasn't my cup of tea.
ReplyDeleteMan Thing came out first by a couple of months, but because of the advance production schedules on comics, that wasn't enough time for Swampy to be copied from Manny. However, something that muddies things (pun intended) is that, depending on what source you read, either the writers or artists roomed together (or shared an office or studio), but neither one was aware of what the other was doing (they claimed). Anyway, both characters were really just copies of The Heap, who'd appeared in the '40s - or perhaps those involved would prefer the term 'homage'. There are a couple of Man-Thing collected editions that you might like, which you can see on my blog. Just type 'Man-Thing' into my blog's search box. And why don't YOU comment on MY blog for a change, ya buggah?
ReplyDeleteCoz I feel intimidated by your indepth knowledge on these things mate lol! I promise I'll stop lurking and start yapping just for you, ok? Cheers!!
ReplyDeleteI meant Woodsy, but now that I think about it - why don't you... oh, that's right - you've already answered
DeleteThanks for the updates guys. Very insightful. I seem to recall a character called the Heap in Skywald horror comics in the 70's. Is that the same Heap Kid?
ReplyDeleteYup, same one - though I think they were new stories.
DeleteI adored Skywald comics like Nightmare. I was a horror nut as a kid and as a young teenager I went up town on Saturdays with mates to buy records and comics. My passions were second hand Creepys and Eeries on Preston Market. I couldn't believe it when there was a new kid on the block, Skywald! I still have a couple now I think. In the attic!
DeleteTime to hop on the old temporal relocator and reevaluate these classics methinks. I'm off to the attic - I may be some time....
ReplyDeleteha ha, great sign off that Mike!
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