Essential Monster of Frankenstein

No one drew mid-’70s Marvel monsters like Mike Ploog. While Gene Colan’s atmospheric pencils were perfect for Tomb of Dracula, Ploog had the monsters—Man-Thing, Werewolf by Night, and Frankenstein’s Monster—down pat. Monster of Frankenstein began in January 1973 with the retelling of the monster’s origin, spread over several issues, and concluded a scant 17 issues later, with the monster brought into modern times.

It’s the Ploog art in the first six issues that stands out: the fluid, sinuous pencils complementing Gary Friedrich’s baroque and sometimes circuitous storytelling. John Buscema’s pencils during the middle of the run are ordinary, although the two-part battle with Dracula manages to transcend the mundane. Doug Moench and Val Mayerik took the monster into the present day, and, although the art got much better—especially in the eight stories reprinted from the black and white Monsters Unleashed—the stories didn’t, save Bill Mantlo’s twisted and quirky debut tale, which unfortunately turned out to be the color series’ last hurrah. Monster of Frankenstein wasn’t the best or longest-running of the Marvel monster series but, as this collection shows, it’s well worth another look.

— Timothy J. Wood

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#1

Oct 2004

Cover: $16.99

W: Gary Friedrich, Doug Moench · A: Mike Ploog, John Buscema, Don Perlin, Val Mayerik

Collects Monster of Frankenstein #1-5, Frankenstein Monster #6-18, Giant-Size Werewolf #2, Monsters Unleashed #2, 4-10, and Legion of Monsters #1

1 copy for $19.95