The
Marvel Comics Brand began in 1939 with the first edition of
Marvel Comics. Throughout the ’40s and ’50s, some of the Timely and Atlas comics had the slogan “A Marvel Magazine,” ”Marvel Comic,” or a small “MC” on the cover. As for me personally, I was hooked when Marvel started publishing the Fantastic Four in 1961. During the sixties, I devoured as many Marvels as I could as they arrived at the local Rexall Drug Store or swapping comcs with my pals, and this is the first of those Marvel issues in the ’60s involved
superhero time travel.
Nowadays, we all know that
Doc Doom is far too smart to think the most profitable way to use his time platform is by sending three of the
FF into the past with orders to bring back
Blackbeard’s treasure (while keeping the fourth member of their team captive). And yet, the story has a charm that stems from the
causal loop of
Ben Grimm’s presence in the past actually causing the legend of Blackbeard, which in turn caused Doom to send the loveable lunk back.
This is a funny lookin’ bottle—yeah, neat. But I bet if I took it home, Pop would say, “It’s just another piece of junk.” Nobody let’s me do anything I want to. I wish I was far away from here; I wish I was on a pirate ship.
