Monday, October 5, 2009

IT! The Living Colossus!


I have real affection for this Tony Isabella and Dick Ayers Marvel monster classic. The concept is pretty clever. A special effects expert finds himself being able to animate IT, the Living Colossus. The monster showed up in two early Atlas monster comics, and was revived again in this series. IT found itself fighting other vintage Atlas monsters like the Giant Gargoyles from space, and the utlimate Marvel monster Fin Fang Foom.




The artwork was typical sturdy Ayers. The way the blended old story elements, actual pages and panels from the old comics, struck me as clever then. I'm sure some would attack the technique as cheesy and cheapjack. I liked it then, and I still do. The stories were plots merely meant to offer some excuse to have big monsters fight, but that was adequate and actually part of the genre.



I have a fondness for these. The Gil Kane covers for two issues are superb and the other covers are pretty good too, though I've often wished the final battle with Fin Fang Foom had a bit more oomph.

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