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Jack Kirby cvr/art; 1st app of the Puppet Master and Alicia Masters; COMIC BOOK IMPACT rating of 7 (CBI)
The compelling antagonist in this early FF issue is the Puppet Master, who manipulates clay figurines much like voodoo dolls, to control those people whose images are mimicked in the magic medium. The real draw of this issue is not the baddie featured on the cover, rather, it is his daughter, the blind, blonde bombshell, Alicia Masters who would go on to become the long-term paramour of Ben Grimm, aka the Thing. Alicia would provide the orange gargantuan with a loving mate that would help him overcome the trauma of his transformation into a living pile of rocks, and also add a new member to the Richards family unit, who would go on many adventures with the team.



Artists Information

Jack Kirby is called 'The King of Comics' for a reason, during his career that spanned six decades he gave us many of the most iconic characters the medium would ever see. From his introduction of Captain America at the height of World War II it was clear he wasn't your ordinary comics artist. But it was his creative explosion at Marvel Comics in the 1960's that cemented his legacy, over a short period of time Kirby would give us The Fantastic Four, Iron Man, The Hulk, The X-Men, Thor, Ant-Man and Nick Fury just to name a few. Kirby would then go to DC and create his Fourth World, introducing Darkseid, Mister Miracle, The New Gods and a host of cosmic supporting players. Long live The King.

Richard "Dick" Ayers was an American comic book artist and cartoonist best known for his work as one of the main inkers during the late-1950's and 1960's Silver Age of Comics, including some of the earliest issues of Marvel Comics' including Jack Kirby's The Fantastic Four. He is the signature penciler of Marvel's World War II comic Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos, drawing it for a 10-year run, and he co-created Magazine Enterprises' 1950s Western-horror character the Ghost Rider, a version of which he would draw for Marvel in the 1960s. His career would span 7 decades until his death in 2014.