This is classic Lee and Kirby, and it just works, regardless of whether the villains are the lame-ass 'Order of Baddoon', or on the level of Mephisto. Sure, it's a little ponderous and overwrought (This is COMICS, not Shakespeare!), but this first Silver Surfer series (which all 18 issues is covered in these 2 Marvel Masterworks volumes) really works. If you are a Surfer fan, though, there is enough decent stuff here to entertain. If you aren't a huge Surfer fan but you want to check him out, starting with more recent books is your best bet. They are wordy, repititious, monster-of-the-week stories that are further hampered by being full of flashbacks to previous comics and origin retellings (gotta hit that page count somehow!). On the other hand, these are silver age comics and so they suffer from all of the problems that come with that. They are fun because the Surfer is just such a unique hero that has to deal with a lot of deep issues and unique problems. Old Silver Surfer stories are both fun and a bit of a chore to read.

Mankind: 'Holy shit, a space wizard! Kill it with fire!' Silver Surfer: 'I come to preach peace and love!' They are wordy, repititious, monster-of-the-week stories that are further hampered 2.5 stars.

Silver Surfer: 'I come to preach peace and love!' Mankind: 'Holy shit, a space wizard! Kill it with fire!' Old Silver Surfer stories are both fun and a bit of a chore to read.

Silver surfer 9 vol1