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.

Solomon Grundy Vs. Venom

 

Undead mobster versus unhinged symbiote - who wins this battle?  I guess it all depends on which iteration of Grundy that we are talking about, as his personality and power level can vary from rebirth to rebirth.

Ultraman Vs. Ultraman

 

Ever since I featured the giant Ultraman on this blog, I have received  requests to have him face of against his DC Comics counterpart.  So this one is for blog patron Bob Greenwade and all the others that were hoping to see them tangle. I'm rooting for the big guy.

The STF 4000th ISSUE BLOCKBUSTER!

Welcome to the 4000th cover for Super-Team Family: The Lost Issues!  When you count the B&B and MTIO covers that I began with, the total comes to 4510 covers.  It's been just about 13 years of daily work, but it's been a fun ride thanks to all of the enthusiasm and support from visitors to the blog. This year was especially nice, with STF: The Lost Issues getting a segment in The Team-Up Companion from TwoMorrows Publishing, quite an honor.  I truly appreciate everyone who stops by to check out my daily covers, especially those who take the time to comment and let me know what they think and offer praise, constructive criticism and suggestions.  The biggest thank you of course must go out to the Patrons of this blog.  Your support has meant the world to me and a huge reason why the blog has lasted so long. 

In addition to the main cover here featuring a meeting between two teams that I have been meaning to get to for years, I've prepared some special features.   You know, it's too bad that legal red tape prevents me from selling any STF-related merchandise on this blog, but it got me thinking.  What are some of the cool STF-Inspired tie-in items that might have appeared over the years?  Let's see some of the greatest STF Swag that never existed - but should have!

Your All-New Saturday Line-Up!

I presented some Saturday Morning cartoons as part of the special features in my special features for STF #3000, and I wanted to expand the concept here.  Most of these new shows are based on previous STF adventures:

Adam Strange joined Star Wars in STF #3343...

Shazam met Shazzan in STF #1178...

Dick Tracy hunted Spider-Man in STF #1080...

Johnny Quest and Tintin Shared a two-part tale in STF #186 and STF #187...

and Aquaman and Sub-Mariner have a long history on the blog, they last appeared together with The Defenders in STF #3927, they battled Mer-Mutates in STF #2270, tried to avert war in Issue #1105, faced the sea's wrath back in Issue #751 and starred in my very first STF two-parter in Issue #3 and Issue #4.

That should make for a fun Saturday Morning, but there's no reason you can't get into the STF fun on school days with the...

Scooby-Doo: Marvel Madness Lunch Box!

After School, it's time to relax with a board game, perhaps one that's based on STF's longest running romance:

The Captain America & Wonder Woman Game!

They certainly have a history on this blog - this marks the 30th appearance of the WW/Cap Romance!

If it's a newer game you are looking for, maybe it's time for a round of...

Superman Vs. The Hulk Rock-'Em Sock-'Em Robots!

That's fun, but it's time for something even more advanced:

The Superman and Spider-Man Video Game!

And don't miss out on the fully articulated...

STF Action Figures!

Ah, what could have been.  Maybe such crossovers will never happen but here on the blog I'm going to try to keep on presenting them to you.  Thanks again for visiting and all of the support over the years.  Let the march to STF #5000 begin!

Red Hulk and Captain Atom

 

Well, the cat is out of the bag and it has been officially announced that Harrison Ford will be taking over the role of Thunderbolt Ross from the late William Hurt in the upcoming Thunderbolts movie.  There is no confirmation yet that Ross will at some point in the film transform into Red Hulk - but Marvel would be crazy if they did not take full advantage of the ability to have Ford Hulk out!  Suddenly, this movie has gotten a lot more interesting to me.

Firestar and Killer Frost

 

Like many (I assume), I was a little confused when I first saw Firestar on Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends.  The fire powered superheroine was named Anjelica Jones, but visually she looked just like Mary Jane Watson.  Peter Parker even had a big crush on her just as he did with MJ in the comics.  It looked like maybe she was designed to be MJ and then later given a name change, but I'm not sure what the real story is there.

Deadpool is The Flash

 

It sounds like we may hear more about Deadpool  3 finally getting underway.  A director has been chosen in Shawn Levy, who also helmed Free Guy and The Adam Project with Ryan Reynolds.  I thought that both of those films had their moments, but were just OK, so I'm on the fence about that choice.  Still, it will be a blast to see the self aware character react to switching to another universe and movie studio.  

Deadpool and The Flash had an epic race in STF #2804...

Spider-Man and Wildcat

 

I'm excited to see what new animation styles will be employed by Spider-Man:  Across the Spider-Verse, Part One.  The rumor is that Miles Morales will be visiting a bunch of different realities, each with it's own visual appearance.  After the amazing work done in the first film, I can only imagine what the animators have in store now that they have the wind of an Oscar win at their back.

Wildcat met the Peter Parker Spider-Man back in STF #2100...

Wonder Man and Martian Manhunter

Oh, that's gonna leave a mark. I'd be up for a Wonder Man Disney+ show starring Nathan Fillion - what say you?  He was fun in The Suicide Squad but deserves a bigger spotlight.

Wonder man here is by the legendary Gene Colan and Scorch is by the amazing Ed McGuiness - I was fortunate enough to be able to pick up a sketch by each of them several years back:

Gladiator Vs. Green Lantern

 

Well, John Diggle has been making the rounds on the remaining CW superhero shows, but he doesn't appear to be any closer to donning a power ring.  It feels like kind of a tease, the way they were building up the Arrow supporting character to become Green Lantern John Stewart.  I guess it's because DC has other plans for Stewart, whether in the movies or on HBO Max.  If that's the case, hopefully we will hear about some casting soon.

Geo-Force and Black Panther in: "Return of the Kings!"

Our Five -Part Epic concludes!  Don't forget to check out Part One ,  Part Two... , Part Three and Part Four to get the complete story!

It will be interesting to see who is eventually cast as Doctor Doom in the MCU.  This is one character that can't get away with removing his mask every other scene, so they are going to need someone with a great vocal presence that doesn't mind having their face obscured. Let's hope we get the most comics-accurate screen Doom yet!

The Defenders Vs. The JLA (100 Page Giant!)

I thought for this Anniversary Issue that I would present one big story.  I always liked the old JLA/JSA crossovers where the two teams would meet, then break off into smaller teams for separate adventures, and finally all gather together again for the big conclusion.  I can see a comic featuring these two powerhouse groups going down the same way.

The JLA first met The Defenders in STF #1600...

Guardians of the Galaxy and Green Lantern

The Hulks took multiple attempts to get right in live action.  The same is true with The Punisher and Daredevil, and even the Fantastic Four will eventually get another shot.  This makes it all the more frustrating that we haven't heard any news about a new Green Lantern or Green Lantern Corps movie for so long.  I think plenty of time has passed since the Ryan Reynolds GL movie and general audiences would be willing to give another iteration of the ring slinger a chance.  I suppose taking their time to get a quality production together is important though, after what happened with Hellboy, so DC's probably treading very carefully.  Hopefully we will hear of some momentum on the project soon.

Raven and The Hulk

Avengers Endgame spoilers follow...


The Russo Brothers have said that The Hulk's arm wont heal anytime soon, so the character has been taken off the table like Iron Man, Captain America and Black Widow (after her solo flick), but I'm not buying it.  There are still plenty of places for the character to go in the movies.  I've already discussed my desire to see him join Dr. Strange and Valkyrie in forming a team of Defenders.  Then there's the Grey Hulk, how cool would it be to see Mr. Fixit on the big screen.  How about a trip to the Micro World with Ant-Man and the introduction of Jarella? There are still plenty of great Hulk villains to use as well.  Most of all, when the Fantastic Four are introduced, there simply must be a Thing/Hulk battle!

Ant-Man and Krypto

Ant-Man and The Wasp may not have been as huge a success as some of Marvel's other recent films, but I am hoping there will be a third installment.  There are still plenty of places they could go.  I'd love to see some of the wackier villains like Stilt Man or The Porcupine show up.  It would be cool to see Bill Foster in his prime as Goliath, or maybe a Bill Foster Jr. taking over the role.  It might even be fun to introduce Eric O'Grady into the mix.

Dr. Doom Vs. Ra's Al Ghul

Reading the comics as a kid, I never quite knew how to pronounce Ra's Al Ghul.  I have to say, that I am still confused - I have seen the character appear on TV and an the movies and heard him discussed in creator interviews, and there still does not seem to be a clear consensus.  I've hard "RAHZ-al-Ghoul" as often as I have heard "RAYSHE-al-ghoul".  Maybe I need to go back and see how his creator Dennis O'Neil says it, that should be considered the official pronunciation.

The Roustabouts in: "Rule of the Ringmaster"

This is the third appearance of The Roustabouts on this blog.  They were last seen recruiting Deadman in STF #2010, and first appeared in STF #1810. The last time around, more than one commenter thought they should tangle with The Ringmaster, and I had to agree that it was a natural subject for a follow up - so here you go!

Nightwing and Nightcrawler previously tangled with The Ringmaster in STF #28...

Uncle Scrooge Vs. Superman

Justice League was not as well crafted as Wonder Woman, but it was a marked improvement over Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice.  I found the plot and villain to be very generic, I wish there had been more surprises there.  The Flash's costume did not work at all for me and I felt Quicksilver had better speed effects.  Ezra Miller was engaging I guess, but did not look or sound like any Barry Allen I ever read in the comics.  Same for Jason Mamoa - an entertaining performance, but he didn't look or behave like Aquaman from the comics.  I thought that Cyborg was well done, but it should have been Green Lantern or Martian Manhunter in his place, let him graduate to the JLA, not found it.  The action was great, even though much of it under the red skies looked pretty video-gamey.  The saving grace for the movie is Superman.  When he finally returns, we get to see the hero we have been waiting three movies for (hard not to smile during the first credits scene).  So, even though the movie suffered from the director switch and is far from perfect, it leaves things in a place that gives me optimism for the future.

Superman and Medusa

Some behind the scenes footage of the filming of the upcoming Inhumans TV series has leaked, and I am encouraged by what I have seen.  The characters, though seen from a distance, all seem to look like their comic book counterparts so far.  Lockjaw looks to be added in later as a CGI creation.  I hope that they can bring viewers all of The Inhumans' cool powers and abilities to life with a limited TV budget.

The Demon and The Punisher

There are certain characters that artists really seem to have fun with.  The Demon definitely falls into this category.  Jack Kirby came up with a great visual for Etrigan and illustrators that have worked on him since have all had a unique take.  Whether it was Matt Wagner, Val Semeiks, John Byrne, John Totleben, John McRae, Dick Giordano or another talent, each artist gave an interesting and effective interpretation of his appearance.