Ditko's Departure.

Since it was all over the internet today (at least the nerdy side of the net), we all learned of the recent passing of Steve Ditko. I didn't know much about his Charlton work until after it was acquired by DC but after that, I became a big fan of Blue Beetle and especially The Question. I recall buying a few Shade the Changing Man off the stands and was blown away by its surrealistic approach and I am a huge fan of The Creeper! I wish I had read more of Hawk and the Dove, my first introduction to them were as later members of The Teen Titans. Here is a character that needs no introduction...

Since any examples I have of Steve Ditko's work are resting in a locker in Canada, I dug through a few of my Spideys here in Japan and came across the first appearance of Spider-Man in a reprint of Amazing Fantasy 15.

ps. Before the pundits weigh in and tell me that the cover was done by Jack Kirby, no need to do so for I was schooled on that elsewhere. What follows is pure Ditko all the way.

    

    

    

    

    

FYI, if you've ever wanted to say, "With great power comes great responsibility." in Japanese, I have you covered. "大いなる力には、大いなる責任が伴う。"(I think.)

This anthology magazine is from where I scammed the story. (It also includes Amazing Spider-Man 300, the first appearance of Venom. I'll revisit that story when the movie premieres in December. It also includes The Uncanny X-Men #s 129-130.)

I also dug up my copy of the Amazing Box to see if there were any Ditkoesque tidbits within.

Don't worry, I didn't pay full price for this box, I bought it used and it came with all the goodies included. Such as a copy of AF #15 in English!

In addition to the Tobey McGuire flick, it includes Stan Lee's Mutants Monsters and Marvels. I need to watch that one of these days.

It also comes with a cool little pin and a frame from the film.

I remember this CD-ROM came with some chocolate treat back in 2002.

There is also a bunch of postcards and some artwork from famous artists. This one by Sam Kieth has a tribute to Ditko.

In addition to the above, I gathered up a bunch of Funko Mystery-Minis of Ditko villains that I've accumulated.

I have all of the above except that rare one of that gal in the red mask. Who the heck is that, anyway?

Another of Mr. Ditko's creations of which I wish I had examples would be Dr. Strange. I loved the recent movie and I hope it gets a similar treatment like the above. In the meantime, here is a documentary about Steve if you've got an hour to kill.



R.i.P. Mr. Ditko, you shall be missed but your legacy lives on.

ps. Someday I hope to get the Yoe books that reprint Steve's Konga and Gorgo. They look cool!