October 12th, 1977 - Marvel UK, 40 years ago this week.

What a strangely uninspiring seven days was the week that led up to this date, forty years ago. There seemed to be little of note on the television that day and the charts yielded no great changes from the week before.

Thank the comic book gods, therefore, that I had something in my life that was guaranteed to excite me.

That thing was Marvel UK.

And, in just a few days' time, it'd give me even more to get excited about.

But that historic event would have to wait.

For now, we were given the awesome offerings below.

Unless I miss my ever-loving guess, Will o' the Wisp makes his senses-shattering debut this issue.

I don't know. He was a bit of a sad case, wasn't he? Much as I sympathised with his plight, I'm not sure he particularly grabbed me.

Elsewhere, the FF are battling Omega, while the Avengers are battling Zodiac, and Captain Britain is dealing with Slaymaster.

Not content with trying to thwart Omega in the back of Spider-Man's comic, in their own mighty mag, Marvel's first family is trying to get the better of Dragon Man.

I do believe Gregory Gideon makes his return in this tale. I know not, though, whether he returns as a good guy or a bad guy.

The last time I saw him in their strip, he'd finished the tale by becoming a reformed man. Did that reformation stick, or has he returned once more to his villainous ways?

Daredevil finds himself up against Electro, a fight that should, logically, last all of about five seconds, though I suspect Hornhead will somehow manage to come out on top.

I've always loved Electro's outfit. It's one of my favourite super-villain costumes. Frankly, any costume that's got lightning bolts on it, I like.

Meanwhile, the Hulk finds himself up against the Absorbing Man.

As their battle takes place on a building site and Bruce is wearing a hard hat on that cover, I'm assuming his new job is on that very site. I do however stand to be corrected.

But it's common sense. Let's face it, if you're a man who's prone to turning into a homicidal monster at times of stress, it makes perfect sense to get a job in a notoriously hazardous location like a building site. I mean, what could possibly go wrong?