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Marvel Masterworks: The Human Torch #1
Marvel Masterworks 1: The Human Torch
After the debut of a quiet little magazine called The Fantastic Four and a relatively unknown teen hero named Spider-Man, Mighty Marvel decided to go out on a limb and put these two risky ideas together into a featuring starring - the Human Torch! But, believe it or not, yes, even with that kind of pedigree it was a sure-fire hit! Johnny Storm, the thrill-seeking, impulsive teen wonder of the Fantastic Four, set the world on fire in his scorchin' solo stories! Now, watch in wonder as the Torch goes to head-to-head against none other than Namor the Sub-Mariner, Spider-Man and more! COLLECTING: STRANGE TALES 101-117, ANNUAL 2
264 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2006
13 people are currently reading
95 people want to read
About the author
Stan Lee
7,566 books2,334 followersStan Lee (born Stanley Martin Lieber) was an American writer, editor, creator of comic book superheroes, and the former president and chairman of Marvel Comics.
With several artist co-creators, most notably Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko, he co-created Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four, Thor as a superhero, the X-Men, Iron Man, the Hulk, Daredevil, the Silver Surfer, Dr. Strange, Ant-Man and the Wasp, Scarlet Witch, The Inhumans, and many other characters, introducing complex, naturalistic characters and a thoroughly shared universe into superhero comic books. He subsequently led the expansion of Marvel Comics from a small division of a publishing house to a large multimedia corporation.
With several artist co-creators, most notably Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko, he co-created Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four, Thor as a superhero, the X-Men, Iron Man, the Hulk, Daredevil, the Silver Surfer, Dr. Strange, Ant-Man and the Wasp, Scarlet Witch, The Inhumans, and many other characters, introducing complex, naturalistic characters and a thoroughly shared universe into superhero comic books. He subsequently led the expansion of Marvel Comics from a small division of a publishing house to a large multimedia corporation.
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
December 2, 2015
I am a fan of the early Fantastic Four books, but this was rough sledding. In October of 1962, after the Fantastic Four had been out for just under a year, the Human Torch was given his own solo series in Strange Tales magazine. Not a bad idea in theory, but the execution left a lot to be desired. I thought these standalone Torch stories were much weaker than the Fantastic Four stories being told at the time. For the most part, these are simple one-off, beat-em’ up stories where the Torch takes on some 3rd tier baddie and hauls him off to prison. They have little to no connection with whatever’s happening with the Fantastic Four at the time. And that would be fine if these stories were, you know, good. But they are not, thanks in large part to a truly wretched rogue’s gallery featuring luminaries such as the Wizard, the Painter of a Thousand Perils, Asbestos Man and my personal favorite: the immortal Paste Pot Pete:
Yes friends – that is a guy named Pete with a big ass glue gun. We are truly scraping the bottom of the bad guy barrel at this point. And lest you think I’m cherry picking, ol’ Pete appears in this collection not once, but twice. I think that Marvel’s 60’s comics are a lot of fun, but this is not their best work (the series ultimately ran less than three years before being cancelled). Silly villains, ridiculous plots, and repetitive action make up the bulk of this collection. For true completionists only – and bring your aspirin. 1 star.
Yes friends – that is a guy named Pete with a big ass glue gun. We are truly scraping the bottom of the bad guy barrel at this point. And lest you think I’m cherry picking, ol’ Pete appears in this collection not once, but twice. I think that Marvel’s 60’s comics are a lot of fun, but this is not their best work (the series ultimately ran less than three years before being cancelled). Silly villains, ridiculous plots, and repetitive action make up the bulk of this collection. For true completionists only – and bring your aspirin. 1 star.
May 29, 2023
It’s rather tough for me to give a collection like this, with Jack Kirby work from the early 60s and featuring my favorite member of the Fantastic Four, such a low rating. But these tales don’t have anywhere near the same quality as the stories from same era of the Fantastic Four magazine did. Kirby is only involved with about half of the 18 stories included here, and they are certainly the best of the bunch. Some of the others are little more than gimmicky riffs of super-powered feuds between lame-brained, glory-hounds. What this volume does offer though, is some fun, fast-paced adventures that do tie-in, and eventually pay off in surprising ways, with the simultaneously published Fantastic Four title. In these pages, we are introduced to the Wizard, Paste-Pot-Pete, the Acrobat, the Eel, the Plantman, among other even less auspicious villains. But we also have guest stars like the other members of the Fantastic Four, Spider-Man, Namor the Sub-Mariner, and … Captain America (BEFORE his reintroduction and appearance in Avengers #4. How does that happen? Spoilers!). There are retuning villains from other magazines, like the Puppet Master and the Sandman. And if one thing should stand out, it’s the names of the Wizard, the Sandman, and Paste-Pot-Pete (who’ll eventually become more well-known as the Trapster). These three eventually form 3/4’s of the team the Frightful Four and in this very volume the groundbreaking roots of this antithesis team to the Fantastic Four. It even includes the first villain team-up between the Wizard and Paste-Pot-Pete, creating the foundation upon which the Frightful Four will grow. These stories also feature some interesting character development for the Human Torch and the Invisible Girl as they are seen trying to live a fairly normal life in a small town on Long Island away from the Baxter Building. This allows for some silly shenanigans that would not have worked in the pages of the Fantastic Four and the confines of their midtown skyscraper headquarters, the Baxter Buidling. So this isn’t a complete masterpiece, but it’s still a lot of fun and I do enjoy reading these stories along side the early issues of the Fantastic Four.
These stories also appear in Essential Human Torch, Vol. 1 and The Human Torch & The Thing: Strange Tales - The Complete. Ollection.
These stories also appear in Essential Human Torch, Vol. 1 and The Human Torch & The Thing: Strange Tales - The Complete. Ollection.
February 18, 2019
When reading one of these masterworks, archives, etc., you have to remember that these tales were spaced out over several years. In some cases, they were bi-monthly or even quarterly. I say that because it makes reading the same rough story outline for the eighth time a lot easier.
This was definitely a way to capitalize on the success of the FF, but that's OK, especially compared to the 7 or 8 X-Men books that came out each month in the 90s. Unlike then, there were villains introduced here that went on to become a much bigger part of the Marvel Universe, like the Wizard, Trapster (Paste-pot Pete), Eel, and more. There are also a few magic-using villains that were clearly the beginning of the idea for the FF villain Diablo that would be introduced in that book soon after these stories were published.
So sit back, and plan on spreading out these stories over a few days, maybe a rainy weekend when you want to jump back into the past. One final note, the ever-lovin', blue-eyed Thing makes an appearance in many of these stories. Ben Grimm is like bacon bits, he makes everything he is in better.
Find it! Buy it! Read it!
This was definitely a way to capitalize on the success of the FF, but that's OK, especially compared to the 7 or 8 X-Men books that came out each month in the 90s. Unlike then, there were villains introduced here that went on to become a much bigger part of the Marvel Universe, like the Wizard, Trapster (Paste-pot Pete), Eel, and more. There are also a few magic-using villains that were clearly the beginning of the idea for the FF villain Diablo that would be introduced in that book soon after these stories were published.
So sit back, and plan on spreading out these stories over a few days, maybe a rainy weekend when you want to jump back into the past. One final note, the ever-lovin', blue-eyed Thing makes an appearance in many of these stories. Ben Grimm is like bacon bits, he makes everything he is in better.
Find it! Buy it! Read it!
August 1, 2018
You know what? I think the law of diminished expectations played out in this volume's favor. Because I was certainly not expecting to like this collection at all, and so, not expecting anything amazing and classic, I was able to really enjoy its silly campiness and its 40-something writers trying to sound like 60s teenagers. There's nothing groundbreaking in this, Marvel's first spinoff series (and thus Stan Lee's first major money-grab), a monthly feature with the solo adventures of the Fantastic Four's teenage flamer (heh); Johnny trains in his backyard, a new kooky villain hatches a plot, Johnny flames on, has a setback, and saves the day. Some of the baddies are truly laughable, like Wilhelm van Vile, the "painter of a thousand perils," whose living paintings resulting from alien pigments rivals the evil jazz musician from the Ant-Man comics for sheer nuttiness. A lot of the stories sort of meander, with lots of setup without payoff and extraneous characters here and there, and some completely strain credulity, like when Johnny hares off to basically murder Namor the Sub-Mariner just to prove he can. But you know what? I liked it! I liked Johnny sassing the grownups in his life, and skirt-chasing a little bit, and being a little bit of a dummy but then finding just the right amount of personal growth he needs to put his pride aside and do what it takes to win the day. I like his sparring with the Thing and his fatherly-sonly rapport with Reed and his sibling banter with big sis Sue ("female member of the Fantastic Four!"). I especially like Paste-Pot Pete. I knew he was a bit of a joke among the legions of Marvel villains, but I mean...like...have you ever read him in these early issues? He's literally prancing around in a floppy beret shooting ropes of viscous white substance all over the page. The writers and artists...they had to know what they were doing, right? Especially when he says things like "Taste my paste!"--right? And when the paste's sound effect is "THWAP!"? Right??? It's amazing and I love how absolutely filthy it is. Take that, Comics Code! THWAP!
Oh, and I'm pretty sure "The Tale of the Torrid Twosome" is about an older gay man trying to "recruit" the nubile young Johnny. Oh dear!
Dick Ayers doesn't get much love outside the inking world, but I rather like his work here. He's not too far off from Jack Kirby, if maybe a little less distinct. He's got very classic vibe--very reminscent of, say, 50s romance titles--which is not a knock at all, as that's where guys like John Romita come from. Ayers imbues Johnny and his friends with a subtle humor and charm, and the menaces he faces are--well, they're not going to upstage Kirby or Ditko for design, but they're certainly something.
BRING ON THE BAD GUYS: Well, there's the aforementioned Peter of the Pot of Paste--nuff said there. Not many other villains of note appear here, with the exception of the Wizard, who's a far cry from his eventual form as a major FF villain. Also the Eel and Plantman, if you're into that kind of thing.
LADYWATCH: Did you know that Sue Storm is "the Invisible Girl, female member of the Fantastic Four"? Well, you do now, thanks to at least two handy-dandy footnotes! There's also Johnny's girlfriend Doris Evans, who I think was meant to be this whole thing but who disappeared after two issues, and a scene or two with the Thing's girlfriend, Alicia Masters (whose blindness gives her an extra sixth sense, Marvel would desperately like us to believe).
SUPERHERO TEAMUP: A couple of issues make great hay of the rivalry between the Torch and Spider-Man. It's kind of cute how Marvel's two explicitly teenaged heroes have this superficial antipathy for each other. As a remarkable young man in my day, I can attest to the fact that the jealousy is real ;-) See also lots of guest appearances by the rest of the FF, especially Sue Storm* (*female member of the Fantastic Four!") Seriously, though, it's sort of sweet watching her help Johnny work out his flame powers in the backyard at their house in Long Island. Doesn't this living arrangement make it hard to respond quickly to sudden super-menaces, though?
CONTINUITY NOTES: The issues in this collection make liberal use of footnotes, but mostly for informational purposes--like reminding us that Sue Storm is "[the] female member of the Fantastic Four!" It's not quite as out of control as those in the early issues of Ant-Man, but it doesn't bespeak confidence in Marvel's young readers. There are a couple of continuity-focused notes, notably one referring to Spider-Man's first battle with the Sandman and one referring back to the Puppet Master's second appearance in the Fantastic Four--the former of which I recently read, and the latter of which which I will be getting to when I tackle volume 2 of the FF. It's the first of many times Marvel will march on and outpace my position in the reading order timeline! On another note, when is it made explicit in the FF comic that the team doesn't hide their identities from the public? The early issues here show Johnny trying to preserve his "secret identity" despite the fact that two of his teammates and know private associates go around adventuring without masks (or disfiguring metahuman enhancements). It's refreshing and kinda funny that he's concerned about his classmates finding out and hounding him like the paparazzi, rather than the standard "If my enemies know who I am, my loved ones will be in danger!" It's even better when it's made clear that his classmates have known forever because his identity is super-obvious and his visions of celebrity treatment just never materialized, heh. But yeah, I have to wonder if this secret identity silliness is the result of scripter Larry Lieber not realizing that Stan had decreed that the FF's identities be public from the get-go. Or maybe I have it wrong and they were all meant to be secret at first! I'd be interested to learn more about this slight seeming discrepancy.
Oh, and I'm pretty sure "The Tale of the Torrid Twosome" is about an older gay man trying to "recruit" the nubile young Johnny. Oh dear!
Dick Ayers doesn't get much love outside the inking world, but I rather like his work here. He's not too far off from Jack Kirby, if maybe a little less distinct. He's got very classic vibe--very reminscent of, say, 50s romance titles--which is not a knock at all, as that's where guys like John Romita come from. Ayers imbues Johnny and his friends with a subtle humor and charm, and the menaces he faces are--well, they're not going to upstage Kirby or Ditko for design, but they're certainly something.
BRING ON THE BAD GUYS: Well, there's the aforementioned Peter of the Pot of Paste--nuff said there. Not many other villains of note appear here, with the exception of the Wizard, who's a far cry from his eventual form as a major FF villain. Also the Eel and Plantman, if you're into that kind of thing.
LADYWATCH: Did you know that Sue Storm is "the Invisible Girl, female member of the Fantastic Four"? Well, you do now, thanks to at least two handy-dandy footnotes! There's also Johnny's girlfriend Doris Evans, who I think was meant to be this whole thing but who disappeared after two issues, and a scene or two with the Thing's girlfriend, Alicia Masters (whose blindness gives her an extra sixth sense, Marvel would desperately like us to believe).
SUPERHERO TEAMUP: A couple of issues make great hay of the rivalry between the Torch and Spider-Man. It's kind of cute how Marvel's two explicitly teenaged heroes have this superficial antipathy for each other. As a remarkable young man in my day, I can attest to the fact that the jealousy is real ;-) See also lots of guest appearances by the rest of the FF, especially Sue Storm* (*female member of the Fantastic Four!") Seriously, though, it's sort of sweet watching her help Johnny work out his flame powers in the backyard at their house in Long Island. Doesn't this living arrangement make it hard to respond quickly to sudden super-menaces, though?
CONTINUITY NOTES: The issues in this collection make liberal use of footnotes, but mostly for informational purposes--like reminding us that Sue Storm is "[the] female member of the Fantastic Four!" It's not quite as out of control as those in the early issues of Ant-Man, but it doesn't bespeak confidence in Marvel's young readers. There are a couple of continuity-focused notes, notably one referring to Spider-Man's first battle with the Sandman and one referring back to the Puppet Master's second appearance in the Fantastic Four--the former of which I recently read, and the latter of which which I will be getting to when I tackle volume 2 of the FF. It's the first of many times Marvel will march on and outpace my position in the reading order timeline! On another note, when is it made explicit in the FF comic that the team doesn't hide their identities from the public? The early issues here show Johnny trying to preserve his "secret identity" despite the fact that two of his teammates and know private associates go around adventuring without masks (or disfiguring metahuman enhancements). It's refreshing and kinda funny that he's concerned about his classmates finding out and hounding him like the paparazzi, rather than the standard "If my enemies know who I am, my loved ones will be in danger!" It's even better when it's made clear that his classmates have known forever because his identity is super-obvious and his visions of celebrity treatment just never materialized, heh. But yeah, I have to wonder if this secret identity silliness is the result of scripter Larry Lieber not realizing that Stan had decreed that the FF's identities be public from the get-go. Or maybe I have it wrong and they were all meant to be secret at first! I'd be interested to learn more about this slight seeming discrepancy.
June 29, 2024
I picked this up at the Motor City Comic Con last May for $15 in mint condition, still sealed in the original factory shrinkwrap. I mean, the cover states that it's by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. It's got to be gold, right? Wrong! Stan Lee only plots and edits the bulk of these issues and turns over the scripting duties to brother Larry Lieber and other third stringers. Jack Kirby only does the occasional pencil layouts or inking, and Dick Ayers does most of the artwork. Ayers is my least favorite artist from this era of Marvel. His artwork leaves me cold. I forgot just how unlikable the Human Torch was back then. Come to think of it, I always considered him to the weak link of the Fantastic Four, being too hot headed and rash for my tastes.
The later issues in the book step up in quality when Stan and Jack handle the book themselves. Lots of fun stuff occurs, like the Torch fighting the Sandman, the Puppet Master, and the Acrobat, who poses as Captain America in a story that came out before Marvel reintroduced Cap. After enjoying the last few issues in the book, I am on the fence about Volume 2.
This book was something of a shock to the system. I have become quite spoiled by the quality of Masterworks over the last few years, and forgot about some of the speed bumps that the line had along the way. This book is from the era where they got the coloring, linework, and paper down pat, but suffers from glued binding. Not just glued binding, but super tight mousetrap style binding. I'm serious, this is a two-fisted read. If you let go for one second, SNAP!, the book closes just like a mousetrap. Glued binding on hardcovers is the devil, and this was a trip back to the bad old days.
The later issues in the book step up in quality when Stan and Jack handle the book themselves. Lots of fun stuff occurs, like the Torch fighting the Sandman, the Puppet Master, and the Acrobat, who poses as Captain America in a story that came out before Marvel reintroduced Cap. After enjoying the last few issues in the book, I am on the fence about Volume 2.
This book was something of a shock to the system. I have become quite spoiled by the quality of Masterworks over the last few years, and forgot about some of the speed bumps that the line had along the way. This book is from the era where they got the coloring, linework, and paper down pat, but suffers from glued binding. Not just glued binding, but super tight mousetrap style binding. I'm serious, this is a two-fisted read. If you let go for one second, SNAP!, the book closes just like a mousetrap. Glued binding on hardcovers is the devil, and this was a trip back to the bad old days.
February 17, 2025
“I don’t wanna burn this porpoise! He’s not to blame for this!”
First appearances of: the Wizard (“Only a superior intellect such as I could have designed so ultra-modern a home!”) (#102); Paste-Pot Pete (“Crude crooks shoot lead! But I shoot paste!”) (#104); and the Painter, another villain that engages with the very medium of comics, introduced wonderfully: “Mix the artistic skill of a Leonardo da Vinci, the amazing photographic accuracy of a modern, high-speed camera, and the soul of Satan himself” (#108).
Look for: a Scooby-Doo! unmasking and a pre-Asgardian The Destroyer. This Destroyer looks like the Shadow Chromite from Power Rangers Turbo (#101); gaffes like the line, “He’ll never it!”, and theater patrons watching a newsreel of the Human Torch’s adventures - a mini-Marvel movie before the feature presentation! (#102); a unicorn-rare line of dialogue ending in a period, and the revelation that Namor “possesses the powers of all the creatures living beneath the sea” (#107); the Human Torch coming up against his natural villain, Asbestos Man! (#111); The Torch making a sacrifice play reminiscent of Iron Man’s in The Avengers movie (#112); and the f’ed up development of Johnny being puppeteered by the Puppet Master to seduce his step-daughter (#116).
“You’re a menace, you blazing boob!” - the Eel to the Human Torch
“Susie, ol’ sis, you’re the most!” - Johnny Storm to Sue Storm
First appearances of: the Wizard (“Only a superior intellect such as I could have designed so ultra-modern a home!”) (#102); Paste-Pot Pete (“Crude crooks shoot lead! But I shoot paste!”) (#104); and the Painter, another villain that engages with the very medium of comics, introduced wonderfully: “Mix the artistic skill of a Leonardo da Vinci, the amazing photographic accuracy of a modern, high-speed camera, and the soul of Satan himself” (#108).
Look for: a Scooby-Doo! unmasking and a pre-Asgardian The Destroyer. This Destroyer looks like the Shadow Chromite from Power Rangers Turbo (#101); gaffes like the line, “He’ll never it!”, and theater patrons watching a newsreel of the Human Torch’s adventures - a mini-Marvel movie before the feature presentation! (#102); a unicorn-rare line of dialogue ending in a period, and the revelation that Namor “possesses the powers of all the creatures living beneath the sea” (#107); the Human Torch coming up against his natural villain, Asbestos Man! (#111); The Torch making a sacrifice play reminiscent of Iron Man’s in The Avengers movie (#112); and the f’ed up development of Johnny being puppeteered by the Puppet Master to seduce his step-daughter (#116).
“You’re a menace, you blazing boob!” - the Eel to the Human Torch
“Susie, ol’ sis, you’re the most!” - Johnny Storm to Sue Storm
July 19, 2021
The Golden Age Human Torch had been one of Marvel's stars, which may be why Stan Lee tried out Johnny Storm as a solo act. The results were not good. Characterization veers between Johnny as a reckless kid and a hero mature for his years (and I'm not even getting into the efforts to give him a secret identity); villains are mostly second rate; and Johnny uses his flame like Green Lantern's power ring. For example, he'll create a saw to cut through something rather than just burning it.
This one has its moments, but nowhere near as many as the FF did.
This one has its moments, but nowhere near as many as the FF did.
April 5, 2021
Fun collection of late-1960s comics
I’d seen mention of these when looking at the covers of the Dr Strange Masterworks - some of which take place in the same comics, just sharing Strange Tales - but had otherwise been unaware of these mostly solo tales of this Fantastic Four hero. (At first actually I thought the title referred to classic tales of the original Human Torch, the android Jim Hammond.)
I’d seen mention of these when looking at the covers of the Dr Strange Masterworks - some of which take place in the same comics, just sharing Strange Tales - but had otherwise been unaware of these mostly solo tales of this Fantastic Four hero. (At first actually I thought the title referred to classic tales of the original Human Torch, the android Jim Hammond.)
November 15, 2021
Amazing... for what it is. A reprint of mostly stories I read on their first run in the 1960s as a kid. It may be nostalgia speaking but I thoroughly enjoyed my time travel back to that decade. The stories have held up well... at least for someone who remembers the times as well as the stories.
November 25, 2022
Stan lee, jack kirby.
O k color artwork. The artwork is a little old fashioned but still from kirby. Johnny and sue storm are trying to live quietly but super villains show up. Wizard, paste pot pete, the acrobat, the eel and more.
O k color artwork. The artwork is a little old fashioned but still from kirby. Johnny and sue storm are trying to live quietly but super villains show up. Wizard, paste pot pete, the acrobat, the eel and more.
September 8, 2024
Classic
Early solo adventures of the Human Torch. Great array of villains . some fun stories. Had a good time reading these.
Early solo adventures of the Human Torch. Great array of villains . some fun stories. Had a good time reading these.
August 27, 2015
The only reason I really bought this particular Marvel Masterworks was that it was only $5 on Amazon, and I had really been wanting to see how they handled the trade paperback version of the series. I have to say that they did a pretty good job, and I'll probably start getting some of the TPB volumes if I see them really cheap again.
This one reprints the first half of the Human Torch's solo series that was originally in Strange Tales. It features the first appearances of the Wizard, Paste-Pot Pete, the Plantman, along with the Sandman, Sub-Mariner, and the first modern appearance of Captain America (albeit an ersatz one).
The book is predominated with artwork of the great Dick Ayers, who inks or pencils nearly every story. He does a very interesting version of the Thing that I kinda like. Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko handle the art on the Strange Tales Annual reprint with Spider-Man, and there are even two stories by a fella named Joe Carter, who the world remembers better as Jerry Siegel, the co-creator of Superman.
This volume is a good, solid Silver Age read - nothing too monumental, it's a good start for the first solo series of any member of the Fantastic Four. I'm hoping they manage to somehow put out the volume 2 hardcover in TPB sometime soon.
This one reprints the first half of the Human Torch's solo series that was originally in Strange Tales. It features the first appearances of the Wizard, Paste-Pot Pete, the Plantman, along with the Sandman, Sub-Mariner, and the first modern appearance of Captain America (albeit an ersatz one).
The book is predominated with artwork of the great Dick Ayers, who inks or pencils nearly every story. He does a very interesting version of the Thing that I kinda like. Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko handle the art on the Strange Tales Annual reprint with Spider-Man, and there are even two stories by a fella named Joe Carter, who the world remembers better as Jerry Siegel, the co-creator of Superman.
This volume is a good, solid Silver Age read - nothing too monumental, it's a good start for the first solo series of any member of the Fantastic Four. I'm hoping they manage to somehow put out the volume 2 hardcover in TPB sometime soon.
July 27, 2016
This Marvel Masterworks volume reprints the Human Torch's solo adventures originally published in Strange Tales between 1962 and 1964. For some reason his solo adventures never really appealed to me. The stories in this volume are all OK (although a bit earnest for my taste today) and the art is fine, but the stories just don't click. And since the stories predate my youthful comic book buying there's no real nostalgia appeal for me.
I expect to enjoy the second volume, Marvel Masterworks: The Human Torch, Vol. 2, more as it contains the final 10 stories in the run that not only did I buy and read when they first appeared in 1964 and 1965 but which also feature the Torch and Thing together. As I recall those stories for the most part lack the preachy tones of the earlier stories and are more humorous.
I expect to enjoy the second volume, Marvel Masterworks: The Human Torch, Vol. 2, more as it contains the final 10 stories in the run that not only did I buy and read when they first appeared in 1964 and 1965 but which also feature the Torch and Thing together. As I recall those stories for the most part lack the preachy tones of the earlier stories and are more humorous.
February 22, 2015
The early Fantastic Four and Hulk stories were largely lacking in super villains as we think of them now. Instead, there were aliens, mad scientists, kaiju and spies. That rather quickly changed and these Human Torch stories from Strange Tales seem to be where Stan Lee tried to figure out how super villains worked. However, the ideas he workshopped in these pages are mostly terrible: Asbestos Man, Acrobat, Painter of 1000 Perils, a guy with the actual Pandora's box, Plantman and of course, Paste-Pot Pete & The Wizard who later become interesting characters.
There are tons of ideas kicking around in these short stories, most of them bad. On top of that, the art and writing is mostly terrible. Some of the last issues start to work their way up to functional, though. The best of the bunch is probably Human Torch vs Plantman.
There are tons of ideas kicking around in these short stories, most of them bad. On top of that, the art and writing is mostly terrible. Some of the last issues start to work their way up to functional, though. The best of the bunch is probably Human Torch vs Plantman.
December 7, 2022
The art is good, 'cause it's Kirby, and he's a master illustrator and comic creator, but these stories are not world changing, and the title is forgettable, even for a change of pace title like Strange Tales. Besides the fact that the Torch having a secret identity is confusing (though it's later settled), the villains are not memorable at all. Even when a big FF villain like the Submariner is used, he uses lame powers like becoming a puffer fish. I'm not saying I don't enjoy these short stories at all, because they have their charms, but overall, this title is just not as good as the Fantastic Four title. At best, Strange Tales featuring the Human Torch seems skippable, and at worst seems pointless.
July 17, 2014
The art is above-average Kirby and Ayers. The writing is nothing special, and follows a similar pattern of improvement after Larry Lieber and Robert Bernstein are replaced by Jerry Siegel and then Stan Lee on scripting. Still, I just started reading volume 4 of the Fantastic Four and Lee's writing there is much better than this rather throwaway material by comparison. I rank this above volume 1 (each) of Ant-Man/Giant Man, Captain America, Thor, and Iron Man, but below just about anything else.
August 7, 2016
Le storie in solitaria di Johnny Storm le ho conosciute da bambino su I Fantastici 4 Gigante dell'editore Corno. Me le ricordo come inferiori in qualità a quelle del quartetto, ma quelle del periodo Lee-Kirby sono capolavori, queste dove Lee e Kirby appaiono poco, col senno di poi non sono niente male. Le dinamiche tra i personaggi sono buone; le storie, seppure a volte ingenue, hanno qualcosa di particolare che le fa ricordare con nostalgia.
June 9, 2016
Fans of the Fantastic Four will love this kitschy collection that details the Human Torch adventures from Strange Tales 101 to 117 plus the story from the second annual. Don't take them too seriously though; the scenarios aren't very well thought through and the action is simply for fun only.
December 15, 2012
Very early Marvel super-hero stuff. Nice work from Kirby. You can see the transformation from the Atlas monster books into the Marvel heroes perfectly.
April 18, 2016
Not bad, but fairly uncompelling on the whole. I found myself in general just wanting to get through these so I could get to Doctor Strange.
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews