Flashback Friday: Marvel Priemere Featuring Paladin #43

My comic shop had its sixth anniversary the other week and there were back issues for 60 cents.  I ran across and bought this comic about a low level Marvel character that I like a bit.  I learned from this comic that Paladin came from the pages of Daredevil.  I first came across him as a merc for hire that did jobs for Silver Sable.  I liked his brash and cocky personality that hide a deep sense of justice.  Paladin was about the paycheck, but deep down he was a good guy as well.

Here he has been hired to protect a young woman from a crazy ex-boyfriend.  We soon find out that the ex is really crazy and has a costumed identity and powers as the Phantasm.  He is very dangerous and Paladin has his work cut out for him.  Not only is The Phantasm going to destroy the minds of New York City, he has a personal vendetta against his ex-girlfriend that he wants to take care of as well.  This becomes a case of a bigger threat and Paladin acting out of revenge in the end.

There is an abundance of text in this book.  You actually read this comicbook.  It has a story that in today's Marvel Comics would be stretched across six or seven issues and have very little words on the pages.  The art is what you expect of 1978; trippy, bold, and heavy.  It works with the crazy characters that are in the book.  We also have a very macho story.  This is the man walking alone and kicking butt.  He has a job first, but soon it becomes personal and Paladin must face evil wounded and beaten down.  This era of Paladin would make a great syndicated TV Show.

I like old Marvel.  I wish we could reboot Marvel comics and go back to when stories were stories and books that were not events ruled the day.

BDS