THE STF 5000th ISSUE CELEBRATION!

Welcome to the 5000th issue of STF: The Lost issues!  Many of the covers presented here have not only crossed over characters from different companies, but from different timelines as well.  There has been speculation that these encounters were the result of an ongoing war between a pair of time tyrants.  As you can see above, the rumors are true!

When you count the B&B and MTIO covers that preceded STF, I have posted 5510 covers so far.  Needless to say, I have never used AI to create them and never and I never will - all I need is Photoshop and the inspiration and encouragement from visitors to this blog!

Time for some Special Features!  First up, let's take a look at larger versions of the stories presented here:

An All-New Saturday Morning Line-Up!  I'd definitely get up early to catch these STF-Inspired shows:

Now for some STF-Related merchandise.  There have been some cool playsets for comic book fans, but what would have been great was one that combined the two greatest superhero teams:

Or How about a Playset featuring one of STF's oldest teams - Robo-Force?

STF: The Lost Issues generally features pre-existing characters, but I have created a few for the blog.  Here are Action Figures for a couple of them.  First up, from a trio of Dick Tracy/Rocketeer team ups, is that unfortunate informant that everyone in the underworld wants to off - Rats McTattler!

And what young fan of STF: The Lost Issues wouldn't want an action figure of its greatest recurring villain - Mr. Universe!

Time to kick back with a classic board game - How about one featuring the two most popular characters from DC and Marvel?

And for younger kids, here's a Colorforms Set that combines heroes from DC and Marvel:

And with that, we close out another Mega-Anniversary Issue.  Thank you to all of the visitors over the years, especially the Patrons, who have help keep this blog running for over 15years of daily covers! If you would like to support the blog you can join them here.  Make sure you come back tomorrow and every day, there are lots more covers coming - featuring surprising new team ups, new and returning teams, characters making their STF Debuts, and more!   

Cyborg and Dynomutt

 

Maybe they missed their window, as comic book movies are having a tough time lately - but I really wish we had gotten a Hanna Barbera Cinematic Universe.  Start with Space Ghost, then Johnny Quest, Dynomutt, The Herculoids and more could follow afterwards.  Superhero fatigue be damned, I'd buy my tickets!

Hercules and Cyborg

 

Hercules was introduced in an MCU post credits scene, but when will we see him again?  There has been talk of a 5th Thor film, but I don't know if that is definite yet.  The next two Avengers movies are supposed to be jam packed with heroes, perhaps he will make an appearance in one of them.

Angel and The New Teen Titans

 

You would think that the Titans would welcome a wealthy benefactor like Warren Worthington into their ranks, but it looks like drama has followed.  Just what could have happened to get Kori so worked up?

Human Torch and Cyborg

 

In this, his 10th appearance, Mr. Universe proves that a truce with him was never going to last.  Let's hope that Victor and Johnny can turn STF's signature villain back before he returns to full power!

New Teen Titans and Doctor Doom

 Victor Von Doom can be quote discourteous, and Koriand'r is not someone that you want to get on the wrong side of.  Yeah, I can see this scenario taking place!  But what would the fallout be? 

The New Teen Titans and Shaman

 

For the conclusion to this three-part tale, we see that Alpha Flight's premiere mage has made the journey to Titans Tower.  He'll certainly be a big help to the team, but his teen years are behind him.  Let's hope he can fit in!

New Teen Titans and Alpha Flight

 

Presenting part One of a Three Part tale!  Looks like the NTT and Alpha Flight are participating in a hero exchange program.  Which two heroes will be involved?  You can guess now or just wait until part two tomorrow!

New Teen Titans Vs. Ultron

 

DC comics seems to be going through yet another reboot phase with their new Dawn of DC titles.  Tom Taylor and Nicola Scott will be bringing readers an all new Titans series and the line up will be the one we see above (plus Starfire), meaning that the classic New Teen Titans team will be back together.  I hope that this is a sign of what we can expect to see on the big screen if a Titans film for the DCU gets greenlighted.

Cyborg Vs. The Terminator

 

For the conclusion of this 2-Part Epic, we see that getting an infusion of Skynet tech only leads to more problems!  Let's hope that Vic Stone is able to purge the evil programming from his systems and shut down the evil corporation for good!

Here's a behind the scenes look at the process.  I couldn't find a clean, text free version of the Terminator cover that I chose to use, so I had to make it myself before adding Cyborg in:

The New Teen Titans and Mr. Fantastic

 

Presenting Part One of a Two-Part Epic!  The Titans met Reed Richards back in STF #2367, so it's only natural they come to him for technical expertise... but wait a minute - what's up with these "new partners" of his? Make sure you come back tomorrow for the thrilling conclusion!

Mr. Fantastic and Cyborg / Lois Lane and The Watcher

 

Still no casting announcements for The Fantastic Four?  I figured that we would have heard something by now.  The upcoming Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is being touted as the end of Marvel's cinematic Phase Four, and there are strong rumors that Dr. Doom will be teased in that film, so I have to believe that we'll start hearing some FF news once it has been released.

Cyborg has been allies with Reed Richards ever since he temporarily took Ben Grimm's place in the Fantastic Four as depicted way back on a cover from 2012...

Spider-Man and the New Teen Titans in: "Carnival Contraband!"

 

When a new team of heroes are introduced, it's always hoped that oat least one new member would become a breakout star.  New Teen Titans introduced us to Cyborg, Raven and Starfire as well as revamping the near-forgotten Beast Boy into Changeling.  All of these new heroes were a hit with fans, not a dud among them.  It really says something about the creativity and talent of Marv Wolfman and George Perez that they were able to create so many lasting characters at one time. 

Spidey previously met The New Teen Titans in STF #767 and the original Teen Titans in STF #619...

The New Mutants and Cyborg

 

The New Mutants was exciting for readers of my age because here was an X-team that we could start collecting and following as soon as they began.  Well, not exactly, for me anyway.  While I was able to get the series off of the stands from issue #1, the first appearance of the team was in one of Marvel's new graphic novels.  Those were only available in comics shops, none of which were nearby my home, certainly not in bike riding distance.  It would be years before I was able to get my hands on a copy.

Daredevil and The New Teen Titans

 

The Tiger King documentary was crazy bit compelling - I haven't decided if I am going to watch the second season or not, though.

Kevin Feige has finally officially confirmed that Charlie Cox will be the Daredevil of the MCU, and many have been hoping and expecting. The only question now is in what capacity?  We've heard the rumors of him showing up as legal representation for Peter parker in Spider-Man: No Way Home, and another intriguing rumor has him appearing on She-Hulk in his original red and yellow costume from the comics. It will be fun to see how his MCU path plays out.

Shuri and Cyborg

 

 It is still unclear whether we will be seeing Shuri suit up in a Panther costume in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, but I enjoyed when that happened in the comics, so I hope we do.  My guess is that there will be more than one candidate in the movie to don the mantle, so it will be interesting to see how it all plays out - especially against the backdrop of the emergence of Namor and Marvel's Atlantis.

Ant-Man and Cyborg

 

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is getting underway, so I hope we get some more information regarding it soon.  Perhaps we will see if the title characters have updated costumes, or if Hank and Jan will be suiting up either in present day or a flashback.  Can we expect to get a glimpse of how Kang will look?  Dare I hope for confirmation that events in the film will lead to the introduction of the Fantastic Four to the MCU, as has been rumored for a while now?

Machine Man and Cyborg in: "The Extinction Algorithm!"

 

I'm not sure what The Vision's status will be following Wanda/Vision on Disney+, but whatever becomes of him, the MCU definitely has room for another robotic character.  I say it's time to bring in Machine Man!  He has the same appeal as Data from Star Trek: The Next Generation - an artificial man that longs to understand what it is like to be a real one.

Machine Man and Cyborg previously met in STF #2725...

Machine Man and Cyborg

Machine Man is at the top of my list of Marvel characters that I really want to see on the big screen.  I'd prefer him in his original version, as used on this cover, rather than the more human look he adopted in Nextwave.  Now that The Vision has been destroyed (we'll see if he truly returns in Wanda/Vision), Aaron Stack could take on the role of a robot discovering humanity.

Night Thrasher and The New Teen Titans

The first 50 issues of New Teen Titans just amazed me with their quality. It had the perfect mix of writer, artists and characters.  The plots were filled with action and melodrama with a splash of humor mixed in, and Perez' highly detailed pencils gave it a cinematic quality unlike any other comic on the stands.  I have enjoyed the team in later issues and incarnations, but nothing has come close to topping their first few years.