This month, Rand Bellavia takes a look at his growing longbox, and reflects on comics released in October 1980, 1985, 1990, 1995, 2000, 2005, 2010, and 2015!

Rand Bellavia is back to share his fond memories of decades of comic collecting and reading in this month’s Random Access Memory.

This month I am happy to present a special no-Grant Morrison column! Happy Halloween!

October 1980

Captain America 250

This was an unusually impressive month for Marvel. I’m not going to spend too much time going into the details, but October 1980 gave us the first half of the classic Roger Stern/John Byrne Captain America vs. Baron Blood two-parter while Frank Miller saw fit to offer the first appearance of Elektra.

Daredevil 168

And somehow John Byrne also found the time to pencil and co-plot (along with writer Chris Claremont) the first half of the beyond classic “Days of Future Past” story.

Uncanny X-Men 141

Next issue: Everybody Dies!

Comics I Read From October 1980

Amazing Spider-Man 212
Avengers 203
Cerebus 21
Marvel Team-Up 101
Moon Knight 3
Peter Parker the Spectacular Spider-Man 50

October 1985

Daredevil 227

Five years after introducing us to Elektra, Frank Miller returns to Daredevil (assisted by the insanely talented David Mazzucchelli) for the rightfully praised “Born Again,” which begins here.

We open with a full-page splash of Matt Murdock in bed. Each subsequent issue will open with a similar image of Matt. If you view them in sequence, he slowly curls into a fetal position, then recreates the pieta, before being symbolically born again in a standing position.

The heart of this story is Kingpin learns Daredevil’s secret identity and systematically destroys Matt Murdock’s life. While Matt is clearly the main character, we spend a lot of time inside the head of Matt’s reporter friend Ben Urich.

And the Kingpin doesn’t hold back. Matt is disbarred and his bank accounts are frozen.

Understandably, it is a fairly unhinged Daredevil that hits the streets that night.

No amount of physical violence seems able to shake loose what is happening to Matt Murdock. Then — unable to resist gilding the lily — The Kingpin blows up Matt’s house.

Comics I Read From October 1985

Amazing Spider-Man 272, 273
Avengers 263
Cerebus 79
Coyote 15
Crisis on Infinite Earths 10, 11
Defenders 151
Doctor Strange 75
Epic Illustrated 33
Fantastic Four 286
Incredible Hulk 315
Longshot 5, 6
Marvel Fanfare 24
Miracleman 3D Special
Mr. Monster 3
One 3
Peter Parker the Spectacular Spider-Man 110
Power Man and Iron Fist 121
Punisher 1
Secret Wars II 7
Solomon Kane 3
Super Powers 5
Swamp Thing 44
Uncanny X-Men 201
Vigilante 25
Vision and the Scarlet Witch 4
Web of Spider-Man 11
West Coast Avengers 5
X-Men Annual 9
X-Men/Alpha Flight 2

October 1990

Sandman 21

While I was certainly aware that the Sandman was a good comic (and Neil Gaiman a good writer) before this issue, this is the moment when I felt like the Sandman and Gaiman found their voice. Before this, the promise of greatness was there, but it wasn’t until the Season of Mists storyline that the series truly shifted from potential to kinetic energy. There was also an important shift away from horror and toward high fantasy, which is a much more comfortable fit for Gaiman. Here Gaiman finally shakes off the influence (no doubt requested — if not dictated — by his editors) of Alan Moore.

The overall story takes a huge leap forward as the Endless (bar one) come together for the first time.

That’s (left to right) Destiny, Death, Dream, Desire, Despair and Delirium (formerly Delight).

Those of reading monthly were driven a bit crazy trying to figure out what D word their missing brother would occupy. At the time, my guess was Design but (spoiler warning) it ended up being Destruction. (I loved the character, but having the missing character be Destruction made little sense to me, as we seemed to suffer no lack of Destruction during his absence, while both Dream and Design did appear to be missing through much of the 20th century.)

This is a typical family reunion, as fights occur and factions are formed. Dream and Death have always been close, which can be a double-edged sword. Dream is comfortably confiding in Death, but she is equally comfortable calling him on his bullshit.

But Dream’s recent experiences have changed him, and he’s willing to listen to reason.

Though it wasn’t Death’s intention, she sets Dream on a dangerous path.

And while this turn of events is a surprise to Death, it was always Dream’s Destiny.

October 1995

Preacher 9

Christina L’Angelle had recently run away from home and fallen in with some hippies. John Custer was a soldier returning from Vietnam.

Not knowing how else to respond to his homecoming, John gets a drink. Christina seeks him out.

They open up to one another and we learn that Jesse comes by his cockiness honestly.

By the time Christina’s horrible family catch up to her, she’s pregnant. They are dragged back to Angelville and when Jesse is five, John has had enough. John offer Jesse a life philosophy that clearly doubles as Preacher’s mission statement.

Comics I Read from October 1995

Batman: Manbat 3
Bone 21
Captain America 446
Cerebus 199
Daredevil 347
Doctor Strange 84
Egypt 5
Flash 108
Goddess 7
Hate 20
Hellblazer 96
Horrorist 1
Impulse 9
Incredible Hulk 436
Invisibles 15
Kurt Busiek’s Astro City 3
Last Avengers Story 2
Madman Comics 9
Mask 9
Sandman 73
Shade the Changing Man 66
Skrull Kill Krew 4
Spider-Man Team-Up 1
Starman 14
Swamp Thing 161
Thor 493
Underworld Unleashed 2, 3
Untold Tales of Spider-Man 4
Vertigo Voices: The Eaters
Wildcats 23

October 2000

Ultimate Spider-Man 2

I was lucky enough to have met Brian Michael Bendis when he was a struggling indy comic writer/artist. I remember at one Pittsburgh Comicon when he told me he had a “major project” in the works with Marvel that he couldn’t give any details about. It was, of course, Ultimate Spider-Man. And it makes perfect sense that this is the book that launched Bendis into comic book stardom. It played to his strengths by giving him a solid story to work with — allowing him to focus fully on character and dialog.

This is also a milestone in the history of comic book decompression, as Bendis take the 11 page Spider-Man origin story from Amazing Fantasy 15 and expands it to seven full issues.

One of the best aspects of this series is that Bendis writes fairly convincing teenagers. He clearly studied turn-of-the-century teen speaking patterns, while also managing to get more general teen behavior and motivations down pretty well.

Peter Parker is typical teenager. He’s a good kid, but he’s still a hormonal dick. So, of course the moment he gets super-powers he uses them to take on his bully.

Aunt May and Uncle Ben are, of course, concerned about his newfound penchant for violence.

Uncle Ben has a ponytail for some reason. (Did anyone have a ponytail in 2000?)

Come the morning, Peter is sufficiently contrite. And I like snarky Aunt May.

Importantly, Uncle Ben gets some space to interact with May and Peter (so we all miss him when he’s gone).

October 2005

New Avengers 12

Five years later Bendis was the King of Marvel. New Avengers was great fun, but could hardly be considered story-driven. I imagine the plot for this issue read:

“Hey Finch. Draw me 20 pages of the Avengers fighting Ninjas. I’ll add snappy dialog. Oh, and make sure Luke rides an elevator at some point.”

Spider-Man is always going to be the star of any quip-driven issue.

For some reason, Cap wants a piece of the comedic action.

Luke’s idea to move to the roof doesn’t work out so well for him.

Hence the all-important elevator page:

And, right back to the mid-fight banter.

October 2010

I Am an Avenger 2

When Greg Rucka and Michael Lark work together, good things happen, and this issue’s “Post-Mortem” is no exception. Steve Rogers attends the funeral of a fallen soldier and has an uncomfortable confrontation with his widow.

Undaunted, Steve answers her question with the only information he has.

As Captain America, Steve is a symbol of all that is good about the United States of America. But symbols work both ways. And Steve understands that you can’t be a living embodiment of the country without also being a target for a widow’s anger and grief.

Later, we learn the “favor” that Steve was asking of her.

October 2015

The Surface 4

The first three parts of this four-issue series were quite interesting and engaging, but this issue goes entirely (entertainingly, enticingly, excellently) off the rails, as Ales Kot inserts himself into the story.

Many comic book readers might sense a Grant Morrison influence, and while I’m confident that Kot is a fan, this appears to be more influenced by Philip K. Dick’s VALIS than any specific Morrison work.

Doublehead confronts his father — or does Kot confront his father?

Father and son speak of theme and symbolism.

Throughout the story, it’s been intentionally unclear whether the narrator is speaking as the characters, to the characters, or directly to the reader. Turns out the Narrator (who is clearly a separate character in the story) has been talking to the Author (another separate character) the whole time. There are multiple Ales Kot’s in play here, numbered here for your convenience: Ales Kot I is the writer of the story (the living human who does not actually appear at all in this story). Ales Kot II is the character who appears visually and has dialogue in the story. Ales Kot III is the omniscient and unreliable Narrator that (it turns out) is speaking to Ales Kot IV, who is the (character of the) Author, who must be separated from Ales Kot I (the actual author of The Surface) but can’t necessarily be considered to be the same as Ales Kot II.

Ales Kot II confronts his dead father.

And of course there are more than four Ales Kot’s. For instance, the character of Ales Kot II’s father is really just a creation and extension of Ales Kot I — which is, of course, kind of the point of the whole thing.

The layers and storytelling are compellingly complex for a comic so teasingly titled.

Another big question The Surface addresses is Why are we so compelled to tell stories?

Weirdly, a few years back I told a story (in screenplay form) that climaxed with an exchange hauntingly similar to the one on this next page:

Okay, there was no guy with a thumbprint for a face, but otherwise that’s pretty spot on.

Agents of Atlas 1

That was some heady stuff. Enjoy this bonus page of Phil Coulson talking to a gorilla.

RANDom Access Memory – October 2020

October 1980

Captain America 250

Daredevil 168