Siskoid's Comics Recollected - August 1983


Siskoid's Comics Recollected is a nostalgic video series in which I go back in time to the first months of my buying (American) comics. Please share your memories too!

Related images
Ace, Lois Lane, Madame .44, Nelvana of the Northern Lights... I inadvertently gave a lot of space to heroines this week, so let's continue the theme with some cool ladies from August 1983's comics! First up, Paul Smith's beautiful Dark Phoenix!
Lorraine Reilly, who doesn't need to be in Firehawk form to be hot and kickass:
And at the center there, Venus the Flying Trap with partner Trouble Clef, surrounded by a bunch of Your Own Villains(TM):
Related links
Uncanny X-Men #175 was part of what I called Wedding Week.
Fury of Firestorm Annual #1 was the cornerstone of my article on why I like Firestorm.
This project would just not be possible without Mike's Amazing World of Comics and its comics-by-release-date database.

What comics did YOU get in August of '83? Or alternately, in your fifth month of reading comics?

Comments

Jeff R. said…
Okay, July 1979. As you guessed, I picked up Action #500 (Actually, I wouldn't miss an issue of Action until the Action Comics Weekly era.) It was an excellent anneversary issue, with a retelling of not just Kal-El's origins but his entire story to date (This was where I was first introduced to Lori Lemaris, who I still prefer over Lois and Lana. I'm a 3rd girl guy, favoring Cheryl and Ukyo as well in their respecting polyhedra.) All wrapped around a framing story with Luthor tricking him into remembering his life so as to program a robot duplicate that absorbs enough of Superman's personality as well as his memories to turn on its creator.

I remember doing the math on the other books around and noticing that while nothing was going to hit a x00 issue milestone soon, a bunch would be coming in about a year and a half or so. I don't think that I even noticed the Spider-man that was coming; I had an active dislike of that character by then.

But I did start collecting some Marvel, in the form of Fantastic Four #211, which introduced Terrax, one of the more obscure heralds of Galactus. This was in the middle of an interestng Wolfman/Byrne run..

Also: DCCP 14, with Superboy. The first Secret Origins Digest. Superman #340. Superboy and the Legion #256. I think I may have picked up Wonder Woman #260; the cover looks awfully familar but If so it didn't lead to any more of that book. And Justice League #171, which was a Crisis crossover. I'm not sure whether or not I'd read the previous year's Crisis in Whitman form before or after this. I was never in any way confused by DC's parallel earths.
Siskoid said…
Made me go back to see if I later acquired some books that came out in July '79...

Nothing REALLY rings a bell, though at this time, I would probably have inherited lots of those Archie, Richie Rich and Hot Stuff comics (all gone now), and I did subsequently collect a complete run of DC Comics Presents and What If? so I have that month's issues, but not entirely memorable (even though I did a write-up of the What If for this very blog). I think I have the JLA issue too. That's Mr. Terrific under that tarp, right?
Anonymous said…
My parents bought my first comic in Oct 1971 at age 3 (Dennis the Menace Pocket Full of Fun 10). Don't think they bought anything at my fifth month (which would have been Feb 72). By Aug 83, age 15, my buying list comprised Marvel, DC, First, Eclipse, A/V, and anything I could afford
Siskoid said…
I can only imagine what my collection would have been like if I'd started earlier.

(Of course, I DID start earlier, but only with French comics, which is a whole other ball game.)