Forty years ago today - February 1981.

Thanks to Charlie Horse 47 and Killdumpster for their sponsorship of this post, via the magic of Patreon. 

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It is time to smash, face first, into 1981 and the comics which bore the cover date of February for that year.

The Avengers get called to a mysterious island, by an SOS, only to discover, upon arrival, that the sender's one of the Yellow Claw's fiancées and that he's not overly bothered over whether she stays or leaves, because he's got plenty more where she came from.

Not for the first time, the brawling barbarian finds himself battling the illusion-creating power of a sorcerer.

Possibly, for the first time, he finds himself up against a homicidal rug.

I do believe Yag-kosha, the pachydermal humanoid from Tower of the Elephant, puts in a guest appearance, if only in illusory form.

Cap's still in England and still trying to thwart Baron Blood's latest scheme.

Fortunately, he has the new Union Jack to help him - plus a new-found willingness to chop people's heads off.

A group of space parasites is, somehow, unleashed upon the Earth and starts transforming people and animals, in all sorts of strange ways.

Fortunately, the Fantastic Four are there to deal with them.

Or are they? One can't help but notice Sue's acting very oddly, all of a sudden...

The Hulk finds himself in Israel and up against that nation's greatest super-heroine when she decides he must be in league with terrorists.

I can't help feeling I've said this all before. I can't imagine where...

Iron Man's out to explore Roxxon's mystery satellite and, there, encounters the not-at-all-duffly named Sunturion who's determined to protect and defend the satellite at all costs.

This newcomer isn't actively malevolent but is, clearly, going to get a load of people killed if he doesn't sort himself out.

Peter Parker meets the new girl across the hallway who he instantly decides he likes way better than Debbie Whitman.

Needless to say, that doesn't stop him still dating Debbie while wishing, all the time, that he was with the other girl.

You can start to see why the other kids in high school didn't like him.

Meanwhile, the Wizard's out to get Spidey, for reasons I can't remember.

But who is his mysterious accomplice?

And why, at no point, are we allowed to see his face?

It's Spides to the rescue when Peter Parker and Debbie Whitman are kidnapped by Mysterio and his phony aliens who're eager to get their mitts on the vast fortune they think is hidden within Aunt May's old house.

Yet again, I can't help feeling I've said this all before...

If I remember right, the Wrecker breaks the rest of the Wrecking Crew out of jail, so they can help him in his plot to gain vengeance upon Thor.

That's the plan, anyway.

What really happens is Thor shows up and flattens the lot of them.

Kitty Pryde's travelled to the past to prevent the future in which the Sentinels have taken over America and killed all its super-beings - even the ones whose comics sell well.

This leads to a clash with the New Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, led by Mystique.

But has Kitty done enough to prevent that future from happening?

And where does this all leave John Connor?