Yeah I see it as Ian Churchill too. Right around the time AoA was about to start and then after it just about into the 2000s. Greg Capullo and Romita Jr. had their versions of Cable that were like X-Force and then the next iteration was basically an X-costume but more Cable-specific which is what we have here!! They did a great job and I might have some fun doing a little paint work to make other iterations as well.
I mostly associate this look with Ian Churchill because that's who seemed to be drawing the Cable comics during the bulk of the time he was in this outfit. That and Steve Skroce. I'm sure if we can figure out what body this Cable is on we can find a decent skintone arm to swap in so the bicep and forearm being fleshtone helps him look more Churchill-esque.
I already know I'm going to have to source different guns for him as I don't ever remember Cable heavily using guns that small. Would be cool if someone also 3d printed his laser gun backpack thing too.
I am beyond thrilled they made an awesome looking Zabu, and hopefully we'll see Lockjaw, but they haven't made any horses yet? So much re-use potential for a horse sculpt.
Picked up some 80th two packs from GS Canada, $26 ish for doom 2 pack and $30 for the Skrill queen and super, I'm glad cause I would have been upset spending retail on those, here's hoping for more deals in '24
My GameStop has the Skrull 2-pack as well, and I passed on it before but still don't want to pay the $49.99 they're asking for it. I'm hoping the price drops.
I know I'm late coming to the party, but I just wanted to say that of all the cool reveals Tuesday, the one that has me the most excited is the Zemo/Zola two pack.
Anyone who's read the first ten issues of Avengers knows how important Heinrich Zemo is to Avengers history. Even though he was only around for a short time (He was killed by a landslide in issue 15) he still made a significant impact. He created Wonder Man and he also founded the Masters of Evil.
He'll look great with the Radioactive Man and the Enchantress. Of course, the Executioner, the Melter and the original Black Knight to round out the original team would be great. And while we're at it, Ultron's Masters of Evil, Egghead's Masters of Evil, Baron Helmut Zemo's Masters of Evil, The West Coast Masters of Evil, Doctor Octopus' Masters of Evil, The Crimson Cowl's Masters of Evil, The Shadow Council's Masters of Evil, Lightmaster's Masters of Evil ... and maybe the Multiversal Masters of Evil would be fine additions to the collection.
Dwight, Dan and Ryan: You guys got us covered, right?
Oh, and Rick Jones and Jarvis, too.
The Avengers will never be complete without them.
@sdcomics A Peter Parker head on the Hood's body is a semi-decent kit bash for Rick, but I'd be happy with an official figure. Give him some Nega-bands and a guitar too!
I know I'm late coming to the party, but I just wanted to say that of all the cool reveals Tuesday, the one that has me the most excited is the Zemo/Zola two pack.
Anyone who's read the first ten issues of Avengers knows how important Heinrich Zemo is to Avengers history. Even though he was only around for a short time (He was killed by a landslide in issue 15) he still made a significant impact. He created Wonder Man and he also founded the Masters of Evil.
He'll look great with the Radioactive Man and the Enchantress. Of course, the Executioner, the Melter and the original Black Knight to round out the original team would be great. And while we're at it, Ultron's Masters of Evil, Egghead's Masters of Evil, Baron Helmut Zemo's Masters of Evil, The West Coast Masters of Evil, Doctor Octopus' Masters of Evil, The Crimson Cowl's Masters of Evil, The Shadow Council's Masters of Evil, Lightmaster's Masters of Evil ... and maybe the Multiversal Masters of Evil would be fine additions to the collection.
Dwight, Dan and Ryan: You guys got us covered, right?
I've been working through the OG Avengers and those early issues put a new Heinrich Zemo back on the top of my wants list. VERY excited to be getting him, and the Zola looks like a great improvement. I would love if they'd follow him up with FA Wonder Man, OG Black Knight, and Melter!
Yes! First Appearance Wonder Man, original Black Knight, and Melter would be amazing to get in Legends! And of course, Executioner!
My GameStop has the Skrull 2-pack as well, and I passed on it before but still don't want to pay the $49.99 they're asking for it. I'm hoping the price drops.
Target has those sets pretty cheap on eBay:
Doom/Monica for $32.99: https://www.ebay.com/itm/175822177255
Skrull Queen/Super Skrull for $22.99: https://www.ebay.com/itm/204422896045
Plus you can make lower offers and I've heard people say they often take them.
File this one under "Things about the Avengers that I never knew" (Because I didn't. Maybe some of you knew about this, but I did not. And I thought I knew a lot about comics history but maybe I don't).
Anyway.
So there's a publisher in England that specializes in deluxe, well crafted premium hardcover books. Lately they've been publishing classic Marvel and DC comics in this format. They've recently released an Avengers volume containing 11 issues pulled from various points throughout the Assemblers history, hand picked by none other than Roy "The Boy" Thomas, who happens to be pretty well versed in Avengers lore being that he was Stan Lee's assistant and wrote 70 straight issues of the title back in the late 60's and early 70's.
https://www.foliosociety.com/usa/the-avengers.html
Not only did he choose the comics, but Roy wrote the introduction as well. And that's where I learned something I never knew.
It seems the Avengers first assembled to get Stan Lee and Marvel Comics out of, of all things ... a scheduling crisis.
It was early in 1963, and you needed to put butter on Marvel because they were on a heck of a roll. The Fantastic Four, Spider-Man, Hulk, Iron Man, Thor and Ant-Man were all doing well and established themselves as stars. Despite the crappy distribution deal Marvel had entered into a few years earlier, they were selling lots of comics. So publisher Martin Goodman ordered Stan to add two more titles to the schedule for the month of June. That was originally supposed to be the X-Men and Daredevil. So what happened?
Stan and artist Jack Kirby were not having any problems with getting the X-Men out on time, but the artist assigned to Daredevil, Bill Everett (Creator of Namor, the Sub-Mariner), was having some pretty serious health concerns. When it looked like Bill was not going to meet his deadline, Stan and Jack were forced to do something. And do it fast. In like less than a week. There was no time to cook up any elaborate origin stories, so Stan picked some already established characters to form a new team, and he and Jack plotted the first issue overnight. Because both Stan and Jack were fast and good, Avengers and X-Men both premiered the same month (And some old timers say the same day) in June of 1963.
I'm pretty sure Stan and Jack would have created a Marvel version of DC's Justice league eventually, but we got them a little sooner this way. And we got them the same day as the X-Men. Amazing.
As for Daredevil, ol' hornhead made his debut a few months later in February of 1964 and I don't have to tell you what a fan favorite that character turned out to be. Sadly, "Wild" Bill Everett died ten years later from complications due to heart surgery. He was a much too young 55 years of age at the time of his passing, but he left behind an incredible legacy.
So you now you know the rest of the story.
I've been working through the OG Avengers and those early issues put a new Heinrich Zemo back on the top of my wants list. VERY excited to be getting him, and the Zola looks like a great improvement. I would love if they'd follow him up with FA Wonder Man, OG Black Knight, and Melter!
A few years ago, I decided to read every Avengers story from issue 1 all up through the then current storyline, Secret Wars. So about 1963 to early 2016. And that included all the annuals, cross-overs, spin offs, mini-series, maxi-series and what have you. It took me about 8 months but it was great fun. There was some slow periods but for the most part the Avengers have had a great run and an amazing history.
Thor was the first one to yell "Avengers Assemble" in issue 10. In issue 11, Captain America used the less impressive "Avengers Away!". In number 12, Iron Man said "Avengers Attack!" We all know Stan loved alliteration (Peter Parker, Matt Murdock, Reed Richards, Scott Summers, Betty Brant, J. Jonah Jameson) so we knew their official battle cry was going to be one of those three phrases. Thor used "Avengers Assemble" again in issue 14. Captain America said it on the cover of issue 16 and that iced it. A catch phrase was born.
It was cool to watch the Avengers evolve from a group of disparate individuals who clearly didn't trust each other into the fellowship we all know today. You could see it come together. Stark Mansion became Avengers Mansion. There was the first story with Jarvis. The first time they used a Quinjet. The introduction of their by-laws and electing a chairman. The rise of their rogues gallery (Kang, Immortus, Ultron, Thanos, The Masters of Evil, The Super-Adaptoid). The first epics (The Kree-Skrull War, the Avengers-Defenders clash, the Celestial Madonna). Those first three hundred issues were amazing.
Around 1986 or 87 comics started selling more in comic shops than they were on news stands and that was the first big change. From the type of paper they were printed on to the editorial content to the price, things were different. And it was crossover after crossover after crossover. Inferno, Acts of Vengeance, Atlantis Attacks, Infinity Gauntlet, Infinity War, and on and on. And the spin-offs! West Coast Avengers, Solo Avengers! And the minis! Everyone from Hawkeye to to the Vision and Wanda got their own mini or maxi series (Sometimes both). Most of it was fun but now it was costing serious money having to buy all those books.
And then came 2012. And this little movie that had a 200 million dollar opening weekend. It was called Aven something or other.
So now you had Avengers, Avengers Academy, Secret Avengers, Avengers Assemble, Avengers Initiative, Young Avengers, Mighty Avengers, New Avengers, Avengers World and Avengers in a Pear Tree. If you hadn't yet taken a second mortgage out on your house, now you were going to have to. Still fun, but Oh My God was it a LOT.
I think the character that changed the most over the many years was the one who gave the team their name, Miss Janet Van Dyne, aka the winsome Wasp. She went from a flighty airhead who was always trying to make the man she loved jealous to an executive that led the Avengers during their greatest adventures. It was an amazing transformation, but I think it was partly due to the fact she married a man who had extraordinary mental health problems. It forced her to grow up. And watching Hank's fall and rise only to fall again was heartbreaking.
So yes, I hope you enjoy reading those great stories. Let us know what you think! If you had to ask me what my personal favorite Avengers story is, it would be Avengers Annual number 7, "The Final Threat" which featured Thanos and Warlock. And I'm also quite fond of Avengers number 71, a little story that featured Kang, time travel, and the Avengers in 1941 occupied Paris fighting the Invaders. The title? It was called "Endgame".
Enjoy it, buddy! It's a helluva trip!
@sdcomics Thanks for sharing that write-up by Roy Thomas about the Avengers' debut - very interesting!
I've read solid chunks of the OG Avengers over the years, including the big milestones (the first several issues, the debut of Cap's kooky quarter, first appearances of Ultron, Vision, Kree-Skrull war, etc) but never sat and read it all the way through. I've really enjoyed the first 100 issues which I've supplemented with some modern retellings like the Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes run by Joe Casey that "fills in the gaps" in some interesting ways.
I agree with you about Wasp - those early days are rough to read, the way she is characterized is just...well, it hasn't aged well. Contemporary writers have done a great job with incorporating that early characterization into a character with real depth and growth, which is amazing.
If that rumored green Quicksilver does come out this year I hope he has his little booties!
Sam Wilson Captain America up for preorder at Target: https://www.target.com/p/marvel-captain-america-symbol-of-truth-legends-series-action-figure-target-exclusive/-/A-89230364
Started to... can't do it. $34 feels like a lot for a figure i basically already have except for the wings and with taxes and shipping it's $44? Nah. If I see it in a store eventually I'll probably bite but there's no way I'm paying the extra $7 to send it to me.
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