Trains, Migrains and old comics

Challengers of the Unknown- no.80, 1973.


Sorry about the break in posts, I've been resting back due to a series of Migraines, 3 in the last 3 weeks to be exact. I had an interesting trip down to London for the Comic Mart near Kings Cross station last weekend, to start with there were no trains to Kings Cross on Sunday, so by way of Liverpool Street and a chaotic Underground besieged with engineering works and a fatality on the mainline between Cambridge and London, I eventually arrived at my destination at 1pm, 2 and a half hours after leaving Cambridge.

Instead of doing the sensible thing of eating lunch first, I chose instead to head straight for the comics. I'll admit that I am not very good at hunting through the bargain boxes for good deals, and most of the other stuff is too expensive for me. However, I did find a few things that tickled my fancy.

Unfortunately this trip was jinxed from the start because after only an hour and a half a migraine came on. Sickening vertigo, carpet swimming around beneath me, I gingerly weaved through the crowd, trying not to crash into anyone on my way to the foyer to sit down. I popped a Paracetamol, packed my bag and left.

The scan above is from Challengers of the Unknown, no.80, a 1973 reprint of Showcase, no.11 from 1957. The Challengers were Kirby's precursor to The Fantastic Four, and in this story they face a jolly green race from outer space, The Tyrans!

Beware the Tyrans!- interior Jack Kirby artwork.



And from the same comic is this lovely advert for kids Raleigh bikes, remember the ten speed racer? I had a blue one just like the one below. I crashed it twice, once when I swerved to avoid a car coming round a sharp bend on our estate, I hit the curb, went over the handlebars and landed in a rose garden. I spent the next hour getting thorns pulled out of me. The second time I crashed into the back of a parked car whilst looking down to change gears, once again I flew over the handlebars and landed Sweeny style on top of the car. My dad was more worried about my watch than me.

Check it out, in 1973 the cycle dealer could tempt you with 73 different Raleigh models!

Make mine a Raleigh!