Marvel Comics Presents ran for 175 issues from 1988 until 1995. Each issue included four eight-page stories with typically two or three on-going features (and no ads). It spotlighted some of the leading creators of mainstream comics over a period of precipitous economic growth and even more rapid decline. Reading through it is an opportunity to revisit any number of weird aspects of 90s superhero comics. This blog is a primitive, oddly regimented, manifestly scattershot crawl through an often disappointing but occasionally splendid comic. All image copyrights are Marvel's. Issue credits linked below. Updated on Wednesdays. Marvel Comics Presents #25: Early August 1989(3.11.20) Credits: grandcomicsdatabase The twenty-five issue mark coincides with the first of several revisions to the title font. 'Presents' has been resized and brought up with 'Marvel Comics' and it seems likely this change partly issues from the disastrous design of the last issue. Kevin McGuire's Havok cover is a stripped-down design punctuated by some interesting silhouetted body language. The rear's Ursa Major is utterly silly, while McGuire's Nth Man could seamlessly slide into a JLI cover. The letters page oddly includes a (sexist) reference to an unlisted assistant editor, Sara Tuchinsky. A. Havok, "Pharaoh's Legacy" [2/8] Marred by bizarre pacing choices, this second installment suggests that we're in for a slog through the remainder of this feature. Havok dispatches some attackers only to escape in a jet that's then abandoned for a car and then a boat and then horses. All the while, a banal inner monologue narrates the romantic vacation up until the Living Pharaoh sheepishly and awkardly abducts Leila. Buckler's limitations are on full display as Leila's face morphs from 50s romance comic to ghoulish duckface to something out of Elfquest in three consecutive panels. Grim stuff. B. Black Panther, "Panther's Quest" [13/25] Past the halfway point of this feature, the initial impetus--T'Challa's search for his mother--remains only vaguely in sight. It's of comparatively little concern given the strong dramatic notes McGregor manages even in the context of a bureaucrat-military boardroom showdown. Colan carries much of the load, however, injecting Van Der Merwe's retelling of previous events with a haunting, exaggerated T'Challa. Given the pacing thus far, it's emerging as an open question whether all the deep threads McGregor has stitched can get fully addressed. Rosen's work continues to vacillate with some wavy, tube balloons standing out as clearly poor choices. C. The Nth Man: The Ultimate Ninja, "From Little Acorns Grow" The first appearance of the titular character of the Nth Man series and a surprisingly critical piece of background is offered here: the relationship between Nth Man and Alfie. There's a credibly creepy air to the proceedings with Alfie asking to "go look at 'Could Be' stuff again" in a "It's a Good Life" register. Hama cleverly cuts corners by simply inserting the two children into several pages of the Nth man premier issue, though this can only be eerie nonsense to those unfamiliar with what was to follow. Conceptually and commercially, this is a bizarre entry, which is fitting given the doofy flavor of Nth Man. D. Ursa Major, "Sophia" After a peculiar previous encounter with a young girl and her family, the Soviet Super-Soldier transforms into his bear state to track down and save her and her father from Russian "mountain men." Lobdell's relatively tight loop approximates coherence though the scripting is dreary as can be. See, e.g., "Slice. Dice. Avenge" and, more generally, the undifferentiated and unpleasantly mysterious role of the (cannibal?) mountain men. While this would otherwise be serviceable boilerplate stuff, Don Hudson--in a very early turn--distracts on account of an inability to either consistently or plausibly draw a genuinely bear-like creature. Ursa Major is, by turns, a fuzzy lion or a Disney-esque beast. *Insert fake roar sound effect* Power Ranking: Black Panther (B+), Nth Man (C+), Havok (C), Ursa Major (C)