Pretentiousness--FOILED!!

Can you spot the huge difference in these two covers? Look carefully:

Did you spot it? Look again!!

Still lost?

Look at the upper left corner...we have mysteriously transmogrified from Marvel Comics Group into...

Well, that's kind of silly and random. Or is it?

From the letters column in Avengers #19 (1965):

Oh, 1960s, don't ever change!

Of course, this was just the 1965 version of insisting that folks call them graphic novels, 'cause "comic books" ain't high-falutin' enough.

But the glory years of Marvel Pop Art Productions...

...lasted just 4 issues...

And it was back to good ol' Marvel Comics Group.

Why the retreat? From the Bullpen Bulletins in Avengers #23 (1965):

Easy come, easy go.

Still, you have to be impressed by Stan admitting the move was silly, explaining and apologizing while undoing it. Imagine that happening at one of the Big Two today...you can't, can you? Their "modern" PR techniques, combined with a lack of accountability, have made them less responsive to fans, and less likely to confess to error, rather than more. Go figure...