One of the things that several of us faculty members have tried to do here at MU is not only to assess the comics as we respond to them now, in the fullness of alleged maturity, but also to give some sense of the impact they had on us when we first encountered them. In my case, the vast majority of those we have covered so far came to me in the form of either Marvel’s ubiquitous ’70s reprints or back issues purchased years after the fact, but that changes this month, as I noted in my Sunday Special “Cluster’s Last Stand.” The next two and a half years will be punctuated by periodic “clusters” of seemingly random issues, presumably bought by brother Stephen, and I have a visceral reaction to them that is way more powerful than to any of the surrounding books.
And now on to March 1973 (Part One)!
"Countdown to Chaos!"
Story by Stan Lee and Gerry Conway
Art by John Romita, Jim Mooney, and Tony Mortellaro
The Smasher smashes into Joe Robertson’s Daily Bugle office to nab him for The Disruptor but Spider-Man swings in to stop the mind-controlled menace, planting a Spider Tracer on him. Meeting Gwen, MJ and Harry at a last-minute Raleigh rally [that never gets old!], the gang heads off in a van to do some loudspeaker electioneering, until The Smasher trashes the vehicle! Peter changes back into Spidey and tails the two-ton terror back to his boss’ lair, where the diabolical Disruptor ends up overloading the gizmo that controls Smasher’s mind! Seething from the pain, The Smasher strikes the defiant Distruptor and causes the celiing and walls to crumble! Spidey and the big behemoth begin to battle, which ends when the wall-crawler realizes he has to damage the mind control implant in The Smasher’s head. Then our hero unmasks The Disruptor—who turns out to be (not a huge surprise) Richard Raleigh! J. Jonah Jameson comes in with the police and vows to write the greatest editorial of his career in the fallen politician’s honor, just as Spidey burns the Disruptor costume and swings off. --Joe Tura
Joe: An action-packed end to the trilogy features a near-epic fight between Spidey and The Smasher and some nice touches throughout. I love the ticker tape running through some of the pages near the end with updates on the poll results, pointing to a Raleigh win. I also love that we never get the expected “big reveal” with The Disruptor’s identity until after he’s fallen. I could swear I remembered that Raleigh unmasks himself and figuratively twirls his mustache before he’s, um, smashed, but was surprised this was not the case. Only a few unexpected narrative techniques happen in Amazing Spider-Man, but this was a welcome one. Nicely done all around—art, script, captions…A fitting end to a rousing trilogy and well-adapted to fit Spidey’s continuity. Fave sound effect: the life-changing “BUH-TOOM!” on page 19, which literally ends The Disruptor’s dastardly deeds as Spidey stands in the distance shocked!
Mark: The "new politics" of the Marvel U, circa '72, comes a cropper as a"reform" candidate is revealed again as a would-be Fuhrer, with mad scientist & monster on the dirty tricks payroll. "Meet the new cliché," Pete Townshend might have said, "Same as the old cliché," which begs the question: has there ever been an office-seeker in Marveldom that didn't have a cape or cowl (or actual skeletons) in their closet? Extra credit, students, for the best list of pure-hearted pols.
Scott: I really liked this trilogy. The writing was sharp, the characters enjoyable and the art sublime. It probably has to do with the fact that it originally came from a period where the title was really firing on all cylinders. Because of the expanded length, there are a lot of scenes with Peter and his friends, which is always nice to see. Too often we've had wall-to-wall crawling. On page 9, panel 3 (right), Harry looks a lot like Aunt May for some reason. Maybe in addition to shagging Gwen, Norman Osborn did the serious with Peter's aunt years earlier. Ewwwwww.
Matthew: Per Mark Drummond’s comment on the SuperMegaMonkey site, “Information about this [three-part] semi-reprint is extremely confusing—some interviews state that Stan was involved, others state this was done to give newly-appointed Marvel art director John Romita some catch-up time, but Gerry Conway claims that art revisions were so extensive that Romita got no relief at all.” The conclusion being part of the original “cluster,” my nine-year-old self knew none of that, and probably wasn’t sophisticated enough to consider the revelation of the Disruptor’s identity as obvious (especially without the benefit of the two prior entries), so all I saw was a cool story with some cracking good Romita art, which was sufficient.
Scott: I love the juxtaposition of the ongoing election results in the center of the multiple pages. They're easy to miss if you're a "skimmer," but they're a great way of keeping the information flowing in an unobtrusive manner. The revelation of the Disruptor being Raleigh doesn't seem to bear close scrutiny and no real reason is given for his wacky plan to assassinate himself. Aside from the oblique and flaccid wrap up, this was a solid yarn, the last really good Spidey story before everything changes three issues hence. It's just a shame it all apparently happened for no reason.
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| "Meet the new boss..." |
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| "...kinda same as the old boss!" |
Mark: This is part three of The Spectacular Spider-Man Redux, so no need to further delineate the changes (slackers can crib the answers from recent posts), which are again well-nigh seamless. The story's fast-paced, the re-tooled Jazzy Johnny art web-spinning poetry, and since it was "all new" to the vast majority of readers (including, I believe, the entire esteemed faculty), it's hard to slag the Bullpen Brain-Trust for milking the same (cash) cow twice. One discordant note: Gerry Conway cops the ending almost directly from Spidey #40, where our hero strips Goblin duds off defeated Norman Osborne and drops them in an incinerator. Then it was to protect Harry, which made sense, here it's to protect the Raleigh myth, which doesn't. The early '70's were all about smashing down walls of Official Truth to reveal the ugly reality within, as a purgative to cover-up and corruption. Peter (and Gerry) miss that bet here, offering a denouement oddly out of step with the times. Meet the old boss.
Joe: Nice Spidey-related item in this month’s Marvel Bullpen Bulletin. Turns out The Monster Times, one of my favorite mags growing up, “devoted an entire issue to our web-spinning wonder” including a spread on Romita. Why don’t I remember that one? Also The New Yorker “has just featured a full-length piece” on Gerry Conway, which leads our editor to crack that only Ladies Home Journal is left to conquer!
Amazing Adventures 17
The Beast in
"Birth of the Beast!"
Story by Steve Englehart
Art by Jim Starlin and Mike Esposito
The Beast delays the new Amazing Adventures feature by one issue to tell us his origin. That’s pretty much it.
Oh, all right….
The Beast is leaving the pages ofsAmazing Adventures, but not without first recounting his long journey from bouncing baby boy to blue-furred beast. Norton McCoy and wife Edna move to a small town, where Norton takes a job at an atomic energy plant. He saves the plant during an accident but is exposed to radiation that later causes a mutation in his son, Hank. Freshman Hank ends up starring on the high school football team and thwarts a robbery with his athletic prowess. The Conquistador nabs Hank with an electric sword, but Prof. X sends his three young X-Men after McCoy. Holding Hank’s parents as bait, the golden-garbed villain forces the young mutant to steal an experimental nuclear reactor. The two battle, until the X-Men burst in! When the Conquistador tries to unleash the power of the reactor, Prof. X alters the circuits and Hank escapes with his parents, where he agrees to become the fourth X-Man. Cut to the Beast walking off, out of this title and on to bigger things. —Joe Tura
Joe: Basically a reprint of the Beast’s turn in Origins of the X-Men, reprinted from X-Men #49-53. There’s a short framing sequence where the Beast speaks to the audience that’s drawn by Jim Starling, whoever he is. (yeah, I know it’s a typo by Marvel), which is the most interesting part of this issue to be honest. I guess if you never read Hank’s origin before, you’d be OK, but I was kinda bored. I do like the last words of the Beast: “But I’ll be back when you least expect me. So long, folks, it’s been fun!” And the next time we see him he becomes one of my favorite all-time Avengers…
Matthew: “The series was actually shut down with #16,” Steve Englehart wrote on his website, “but its replacement...was late so I whipped out a mostly-reprint issue, stringing together the Beast’s origin [distilled from the backup feature in X-Men #49-53] with some new bridging material,” drawn by Starlin. Part of that historic first “cluster,” the copy bought by my brother didn’t survive until today—probably falling victim to Dad’s transient “buy one, toss one” policy—yet despite the utter forgettability of the Conquistador, images of the atomic plant where McCoy père worked are etched on my mind’s eye, along with that cool cover. Hank would not have another regular venue until Stainless rehabilitated him at last in Avengers #137 (July 1975).
"The Measure of a Man!"
Story by Steve Englehart
Art by Don Heck and Frank McLaughlin
Hawkeye is having trouble accepting that the Vision and Scarlet Witch love one another and tries to find away to keep his mind off it all. Meanwhile, a nine foot guy who calls himself "Champion," wearing a natty suit and goatee physically stops a departing jet and is allowed to board by the cops, who seem more than willing to suddenly do whatever he asks because he owns the airline (Champion Air?). Back at the mansion, Hawkeye mouths off to Wanda about how she seemingly is unconcerned with her missing brother now that she's getting some bionic bonin'. Finally, Hawkeye leaves and changes from his current, laughably fey costume back to his original threads. Once outside, Hawkeye runs into Champion who offers him a cool million to have Hawkeye teach him archery. Hawkeye agrees and they wing their way to Champion's California residence where his inner thoughts reveal this is an elaborate trap. After Hawkeye teaches Champion all he can, the giant dons a crappy costume and reveals his plan to dredge up an old sunken ship containing nerve gas by triggering the San Andreas fault and dropping the west coast into the sea. Result: new West Coast; Costa Del Lex; Luthorville. Otisberg……..Otisberg? (ahem sorry). Wanda deduces that the note Hawkeye sent to his teammates to keep them from worrying was a forgery and they go off the try to save him. The Avengers Assemble and beat Champion. However, Hawkeye is done. He leaves the team in order to make a rep for himself. _Scott MacIntyre
Scott: Don Heck's pencils look like it's 1967 all over again. His character design for Champion is unappealing. He looks like Count Nafaria on steroids. The development of the Vision/Scarlet Witch romance is well done, but Iron Man must tire of these shenangans quickly. At first he's Johnny Supportive, but then, when the Vision agrees with Wanda's assessment of the forgery of Haweye's note, Iron Man utters a cold "it figures." And since we're on the subject, why does Iron Man sleep in the mansion that Wanda had to drag him out of bed like the others. Or are we to infer that they called up Tony Stark at 3 am and asked him to get his bodyguard out in a hurry?
Matthew: I might call this one a poster child for the “clusters,” since I wish I had a poster of Big John’s sensational cover, among a Hawkeye fan’s all-time favorites; being a relative newbie, I hadn’t suffered through a year of Clint’s awful peplum threads. As for the interior artwork, bear in mind that no later than November, when we got Marvel Triple Action #15, I was seeing Heck’s Silver-Age work on the Assemblers simultaneously, so this issue (inked by McLaughlin) didn’t seem anomalous. Months ago, I stumbled on a 2006 review that does a hilarious job of skewering the silliness of Englehart’s story, but as should be clear by now, my nostalgic fondness makes it virtually critic-proof, and re-reading it, I still love it, silliness and all.
Scott: Not very interesting at all, really. The art is sub par, the story itself is dull, although I did get some mileage out of the plot which would later be co-opted by Lex Luthor in the 1978 Superman film. As usual, Hawkeye is a little annoying. Not as bad as his early days with the team, but still not as cool as he'll eventually become. Right now, he's still a douche. The final panel is straight out of Tales of Suspense, with the speaker facing us, but talking to people behind him who don't seem to give a flying trapeze that they're losing a teammate. Thor actually looks pleased. What the Heck?
"A Taste of Madness!"
Story by Mike Friedrich
Art by Jim Starlin and Chic Stone
An attack by three minions confirms to their “Masterlord” that Mar-Vell’s power has been halved by photon rays, yet when Rick reaches the Savannah home, he is arrested by a cop who has shot the professor, and framed by Lou-Ann. At the station, after Rick changes and frees himself, Ronan, Megaton, Yon-Rogg, the Hulk, Zarek, the Metazoid, an Aakon, and Namor successively attack and vanish until Mar-Vell, faced with his dual selves, reverts to Rick and passes out. Super-Skrull and Skragg, whose shape-shifting created the illusions, try to gain information about the Negative Zone for Masterlord, but Rick, alerted by small anomalies, easily shrugs off the psycho-probe helmet and changes again; both sides escape the battle-torn building’s collapse. -Matthew Bradley
Matthew: Anyone seeking objectivity may as well get the hell out of Dodge right now, because I consider the Thanos War that begins in this issue to be the pinnacle of Marvel’s achievement, and those who found me overly snarky on the subject of, say, Colletta or Gary Friedrich will now see the other side of the coin, as I swiftly exhaust my supply of superlatives. Penciler/then-uncredited plotter Starlin and his pal, Mike “No Relation” Friedrich, take their football from one low-selling series (Iron Man) to another, with variable inker Chic Stone giving a good account of himself. At the peak of the arc, Jim adds scripter and colorist to his portfolio to become the kind of one-man-band not seen since the other of the writer-artists I revere as “The Two Jims,” i.e., Steranko.
Mark: The art is still hit and miss (two panels of Rick on P. 3 would make a Charlton editor blush), but the rotating villain smackdown, P.'s 11-15, displays a bodies-in-motion dynamism to do King Kirby proud. Can't wait until Rick Jones goes bye-bye and takes his "groovy" faux-'70's hipsterisms with him. Until then, it's a tribute to Starlin's burgeoning prowess that I haven't been reading the title, know zippo about back story or supporting cast, yet was completely swept up in the amphetamine-paced action. As Rick might say, "That funktastic dude-cat Jimbo Star-Child, like, totally pops the snaps of my stone-washed Levis, man!"
“The Song of Red Sonja”
Story by Roy Thomas
Art by Barry Smith
Inside the embattled city of Makkalet, Red Sonja convinces Conan to join her and scale the high walls of the royal palace. Gaining entry, they come across piles of untold riches, but Sonja has only one goal in mind: to steal a serpent tiara, the dowry of Queen Melissandra, and return it to her father, King Ghannif of Pah-Dishah. When she finds the jewel encrusted crown, it transformed into a huge golden serpent. Conan and Red Sonja bravely battle the powerful reptile until the Cimmerian gains a high perch and leaps upon the creature, buying his sword to the hilt. As the serpent dies, it transforms back into the priceless dowry. With King Ghannif’s treasure gained, Red Sonja rides off to Pah-Dishah, leaving Conan to quench his thirst — and his lust for the red-haired vixen — in the raucous taverns of the besieged yet defiant Makkalet. -Tom Flynn
Scott: Sadness colors my appreciation of this issue, Barry Smith's last hurrah. For realz this time. He does wonderful work for his swan song, giving us art to drool over while we revel in the charismatic relationship of Conan and Sonja. She's not drawn as pretty as people in this universe seem to find her, which is Barry Smith's one weak point. However, she's still a fantastic character and her teasing manipulations give the Cimmerian a severe case of blue balls. There's one laugh out loud, really crappy line of dialog as Conan insists Sonja repay him for her mistreatment with "kisses a-plenty." Such a charmer is Horny O'Conan. The "worthless wank" line is funny, but the guy adding "wank, did you say now?" is simply hysterical.
Tom Flynn: Break out the hankies and lower the Union Jacks to half mast: this is Barry Smith’s last issue of Conan the Barbarian. In fact, he abandons the comics industry for good, though he will return for sporadic Marvel work in 1983. Barry did leave behind a few inventory fill-ins and we’ll get to those in a few MU years. Supposedly, like Jack Kirby and others before him, Smith became disenfranchised with Marvel’s “work for hire” policy. Plus, he also turned his limey nose up at non-Conan assignments, in particular The Avengers, as he complained of drawing “all those bloody characters that I didn't give tuppence about.” I’d also venture that the deadlines had an effect as well, something Smith denies. However, I think there’s quite a bit of evidence considering all the reprints and the rush of revolving inkers during his Conan run. But whatever, I absolutely loved his work on the book and he will be sorely missed. By the way, Barry Smith is his given name: after he left Marvel to try his luck in the fine art field, he added the Windsor, his mother’s surname. Perhaps it sounded more artsy fartsy. Luckily, Barry inks himself — since that is always the best presentation of his beautiful talent, it’s a fine way to exit stage left. I’ve read that Barry’s art was altered, against his approval, on page 8, as Conan and Red Sonja do a little skinny dipping. The story itself is fairly straightforward but it cements much of Red Sonja’s character foundation. Throughout, Conan is driven by his horny Cimmerian short sword but Sonja vows that the only man to take her will be the one that defeats her in battle. A four-page tavern brawl starts off the issue and it doesn’t amount to much. But at one point in the sequence, Roy has a soldier call another a “worthless wank.” Really? That one slipped by the Comics Code? Or perhaps it’s just my dirty mind at work. And yes, the Makkalet siege continues next issue as we settle in for Big John Buscema’s epic run on the series.
Mark: Barry Windsor-Smith leaves Conan and (for the most part) comics behind with a stone, self-inked classic. "The Song of Red Sonja" opens with the crimson-haired firebrand doing a table dance for an appreciative tavern audience, somewhere in the winesinks of Makkalet. Wounded warrior Jax (part of his scalp cleaved away) gets too handsie; Conan objects and a bar brawl ensues, as does several pages of delightful, incredibly detailed carnage. Pausing to look at it again now makes me smile, then sigh over Smith's exit. I love John Buscema, who will go on to provide yeoman service, but there's simply no replacing Barry, whose signature work defines one of the great comics of the era.
Scott: So we bid goodnight and goodbye to Barry Smith, the real reason I stuck with this book for 24 issues. His stunning, ever-evolving work made this one of the most beautiful titles to read. I doubt I will follow the series after this. Perhaps I'll check in to see what's up, but none of the other loincloth heroes interested me aside from Conan and that was mostly because of the art. Thongor isn't going to fill in that gap, sadly. It's been a great run, Barry.
Mark: Roy Thomas had a little something to do with Conan's quality, of course, and he's got our titular heroes on a quest: Sonya to score a golden serpent-tiara, Conan to score some Sonja. She skillfully leads him around by his little Cimmerian, tricks him twice between them battling the tiara become Giant Snake (natch), and ultimately leaves Conan dangling from the end of his (burning) rope, with burning unslaked loins. Outsmarting him at ever turn, his equal in battle, Sonja radiates charisma as a smart, tough, sexy heroine, unlike other Bullpen efforts at Girl Power. I don't know how much is Thomas, how much Howard, so give them both credit for Red Sonya, fierce feminist warrior and unattainable sword-tease. A great story, coupled with Smith's gorgeous, final valentine art, makes this one a true Marvel Masterpiece.
Thongor in
"Thongor, Warrior of Lost Lemuria"
Story by George Alec Effinger
Art by Val Mayerik and Vince Colletta
Thongor outfights and outruns guards of the Great City of Zangabal pursuing him for stealing food. The entire cut-purse kingdom is ruled by the mighty Thieves’ Guild, so he ducks into an ungodly minareted temple, brought there by a dark destiny.
In the shadows lurks Kaman Thuu, a priest of the Seven Gods of Zangabal, who beckons him to follow. In exchange for sanctuary, the priestling offers 20 pieces of gold to thieve the mirror of black glass, which even the Thieves’ Guild will not steal. The mirror’s owner, the cruel magician Athmar Phong, is away “revel[ing] in his brotherhood’s vile rites.” Thongor conjectures that a demon guards this wizard’s treasure in his absence, but accepts Kaman Thuu’s bargain since the gold will buy his way into the Guild. The Zangabali priest gives Thongor the Shield of Cathloda, a crystal talisman that protects against most magical attacks, and shows him a hidden route beneath Athmar Phong’s house. Urging Thongor to follow the yellow symbols to the wizard, he warns “do not stray from the path.”
Thongor, sole survivor of the slaughter of his people, reflects on his fugitive life of the past nine years – the tribal war in his homeland of Valkarth and how he became an assassin, wanderer, and thief in the lush cities of the south before his capture as a galley slave on the ships of Snembis, and how fate steered him to lead a mutiny and join the pirates of Tarakus, claiming power and treasure, only to run afoul after slaying their pirate king.
At the sorcerer’s warehouse he wonders at all the priceless treasures. After exploring the corridors and chambers, he finds the wizard’s slave woman. Her seeming irresistible beauty lulls him into a sense of false security, and as they embrace, she takes his protective talisman from him and transforms into the Demon of Zangabal. “Blasphemous devil!” spits Thongor as they lunge towards each other, sword against sorcery... -Gilbert Colon
Gilbert: Carrying over from the Gullivar Jones series is veteran Creatures writer George Alec Effinger. The writing here, presumably faithful to the source story considering editor Roy Thomas’ track record with adaptations, shows Carter’s prose to be a notch beneath Howard’s, but to be fair, REH had the soul of a warrior-poet who knew how to make his prose and verse sing and soar. Thongor, however prosaic in comparison, proves nonetheless divertingly enjoyable – imaginative but second-tier adventure fiction, nothing more but nothing less.
Gilbert: One legendary anecdote recounting the Lemurian barbarian’s delayed Marvel debut is that Thomas sought out rights to Carter’s character because “Thongor” matched Lee’s well-established taste for names such as “Kragoom” and “Bruttu.” When Thomas learned that he could acquire the better-known Conan for only slightly more, he seized the opportunity. Luckily for Lee, he would get his wish three years later starting with this issue. It is amusing to think that on two occasions, Carter’s Thongor almost beat Conan out, even though created 34 years after – first in the comic medium (which eventually came to fruition), then as the 1979 feature film Thongor in the Valley of Demons (which never made it to the screen).
Gilbert: Those who did not get their fill of swords, pirates, and mutiny will enjoy “Gundar!” (a Tales of Suspense #39 reprint). With Steve Ditko art and a Stan Lee script, it is the sea tale of a castaway who finds an island of Vikings waiting to be released from their curse by their old captain, Gundar, the very ship master who cruelly ran his galley like the tyrannical pirate king of Tarakus.
"Turning Point"
Story by Steve Englehart
Art by Sal Buscema and John Verpoorten
Steve comes out of his nightmare ridden mini-coma to face Muldoon and "Bob" who have tied him up. They try to get him to confess to being the Cowled Commander, but leave the room to let Steve worry about how badly they're going to torture him. Of course, they have no idea who they're dealing with and with his new super strength, Steve easily breaks his ropes and changes into his costume and leaves via the window. There he faces a group of criminals working for the Commander: Plant Man, Porcupine, The Scarecrow and the Eel. Not exactly heavy hitters, but they still give Cap and the on the scene Falcon a run for their money. When Falcon clobbers Plantman, the Eel wigs out and we learn they're brothers. Before Falc can process this, he's zapped off the roof, but caught by Cap. Then, just as they're giving chase. The police commissioner picks that moment to do a poorly timed maneuver and cuts Cap off from the criminals. Cap is suspicious. Is the commissioner the Commander? After all, he did conveniently leave the office two issues back just before the bomb went off. Hmmm. They finally find the Commander and his cronies and beat them in a final battle. The Commander is finally revealed to be Muldoon! He created this whole set up, but when things got tight, he tried to frame Steve Rogers. Now caught and disgraced, Muldoon is taken away. -Scott MacIntyre
Matthew: “For months now,” notes a Bulletin, Steve and Sal “have been laying the groundwork for some far-out and far-reaching new developments in [Cap’s] life...And this is the month when it all comes home to roost!” Stainless explained on his website, “Much like the idea of turning the Beast’s fur darker, Marvel decided Cap should become stronger. I did it but stopped talking about it after a while, and the whole concept simply faded away over time.” Just as well, since it belies Cap’s core characterization as “merely” a superb athlete and fighter, and anything else could be attributed to the Super-Soldier Serum; meanwhile, these teams of third-tier villains are usually less than the sum of their parts—but always fun, especially drawn by Sal.
Peter: Here's one of those enigmas that just suddenly dawn on you while re-reading a comic for the umpteenth time: How could The Falcon hold Captain America in one hand and swing on his grappling hook with the other (as seen below)? At some point he has to use that other hand to shoot off the hook again, right? The unmasking of The Caped Commander as Lt. Muldoon is one of the dopiest reveals in the history of Marvel Comics, one that I'd thankfully shut out of my memory until this week when re-reading it. If I had the energy to re-read the past dozen or so issues, I could provide you with proof why it couldn't possibly be Muldoon but... oh, wait, I have to read Fantastic Four now. Oh, and five fifth-tier villains don't add up to one first-tier.
Mark: I mocked the Cowled Commander's dream team ('cause they put you to sleep), revealed at the end of last ish as Plant-Man, the Porcupine, the Eel, and The Scarecrow as "bottom barrel sad-sacks," but I was wrong. They'd need a hydraulic lift to make it into the barrel. Even Cowly admits his Feckless Four are "milksops," before being revealed as a gone rogue Sgt. Muldoon. "Stainless" Steve Englehart will go on to write some great stories. This is not one of them.
Scott: Good teamwork between Cap and Falc. Leila has a quick cameo and she's not as abrasive as usual. All in all, a necessary issue, but not a great one. The 8th tier villains don't do much to excite.
Daredevil and the Black Widow 97
"He Who Saves"
Story by Steve Gerber and Gerry Conway
Art by Gene Colan and Ernie Chua
Daredevil watches from above as a young man named Mordecai Jones shows off his gymnastic skills to a crowd of people. When a dog attacks Jones, the young man is taken to hospital. After initial treatment, his hospital bed is wheeled off to a hidden room, where he becomes the subject of an experiment. Meanwhile, Matt Murdoch is hire to defend some thugs that DD ironically stopped the previous day. Heading down to police headquarters, Matt encounters a muscular, costumed man exuding vibes of tremendous power. Turns out its Mordecai Jones, transformed into the self proclaimed Dark Messiah. DD soon appears, but finds the Messiah to have various super abilities—such as freeing other convicts to be his disciples or holding DD against the wall with force beams. Jones has taken his crew to Golden Gate Park and put up a force barrier around them. When police commissioner O’Hara and officer Carson ask DD for help, our masked hero finds he can enter the force field from an apex at the top, with the help of a fire ladder. Once inside, the Dark Messiah proclaims Daredevil to be a satanic enemy and attacks. Matt ends up on his back, not seeing that some of the former convicts are now likewise transformed into “super-beings.”
-Jim Barwise
Jim: I’m not sure if the Dark Messiah is satisfying enough thus far to justify the questions his origin raises. Who is his benefactor? How did the others transform into similar beings? And for what purpose? I found the interactions between Matt and Natasha, and the interplay wherein “Ironguts” O’Hara grudgingly admits he needs DD’s help, to be more enjoyable.
Mark: Grim pickings this month. Ernie Chua over-inks Gene Colan, obliterating much of the Dean's fluid, atmospheric pencils that Tom Palmer always complimented. Still looks good 'cause it's Colan, but also much more conventional under Chua's heavy hand. The Conway to Gerber writing transition is also tough duty. "He Who Saves" is street acrobat Mordecai Jones – "as good as I am," says DD – who inexplicitly falls down and goes boom when rushed by a dog, is taken to hospital where he lingers unattended for hours before being hustled by an unseen villain to a tiny secret lab, "perhaps once a broom closet," to be zapped with high voltage and emerge spouting dialogue like, "Yea, back, ye multitudes, or face the wrath of...the Dark Messiah!" And yep, it's as bad as it sounds.
Scott: If I saw this issue on the rack, based on the cover alone, I would not pick it up. It screams "Daredevil vs Super Porn Star!" What's funny is the character inside looks completely different, with only the basic costume design being similar. It takes forever for Mordachai Jones to make the scene as Dark Messiah. Until he came out in that crummy outfit, this story was quite good; a nice lesson about how marginalized citizens can get lost in the system. Instead, we get another wacky villain with strange powers. The final panel is chuckle worthy as three disciples of the Dark Messiah stand over DD. Gene Colan is an amazing artist, but his character designs are often ludicrous.
Scott: Nice interplay between Matt and Tasha as well as DD with the police and the commissioner. Those bits are more interesting than the hero vs villain stuff. Ernie Chua/Chan again elevates Gene's pencils with his fantastic inks. At least this issue looks amazing.
Mark: Messiah Jones, now sporting orange skin and power-bolt shooting eyes, frees young thugs to be his disciples, all in service of – I'm taking a flyer here – a sinister plan hatched by the mystery miscreant who birthed MJ, back in the broom closet. Gerber would later skewer this sort of unholy hokum to great satiric effect in Howard the Duck, but here, unfortunately, it's played straight and the laughs are unintentional. Add the utter stupidity of Mattasha letting the still-unconscious Ivan slumber away (slip deeper into coma?) two days after being cold-cocked by the Man-Bull without seeing a sawbones, and this edition of The Man Without Fear prompts only a sneer.
Mark: Messiah Jones, now sporting orange skin and power-bolt shooting eyes, frees young thugs to be his disciples, all in service of – I'm taking a flyer here – a sinister plan hatched by the mystery miscreant who birthed MJ, back in the broom closet. Gerber would later skewer this sort of unholy hokum to great satiric effect in Howard the Duck, but here, unfortunately, it's played straight and the laughs are unintentional. Add the utter stupidity of Mattasha letting the still-unconscious Ivan slumber away (slip deeper into coma?) two days after being cold-cocked by the Man-Bull without seeing a sawbones, and this edition of The Man Without Fear prompts only a sneer.
"Omega the Ultimate Enemy"
Story by Roy Thomas
Art by John Buscema and Joe Sinnott
The Human Torch and Quicksilver have found Crystal, kidnapped by the Alpha-Primitives. At the threat of her demise they have agreed to help the Alphas take over the world of the Inhumans above—with the aid of a giant known as Omega. They manage to free Crystal from his grasp, but find he seems to grow stronger when struck by any Inhumans (but why not Johnny?). Above the Great Refuge, Reed, Ben and Medusa make a safe crash landing, where Black Bolt’s fellows bring them up to date. Soon Omega breaks out from the Alpha’s catacombs below, leading his fellows to battle. The giant boasts that they will never defeat him, for they don’t know the secret of his power. Reed overhears the imprisoned Maximus boast to himself; his innocent perpetual motion machine isn’t so harmless, it’s the means by which Omega is being fed his power-- but how? The Torch and Quicksilver stop the FF from destroying the machine; until Crystal can tell the entire secret she has learned. It is the Inhumans own guilt at enslaving the Alpha-Primitives that feeds Omega, and only by facing up to it can they stop his attack, and drain his strength. The realization frees them, but should their darker emotions come forth, Omega will rise again. The Alphas, free at last, return to their underground kingdom. Crystal chooses between Quicksilver and Johnny, and not in the Torch’s favour. Johnny feigns “no big deal,” making it easier for his ladylove, who fails to see the tears in his eyes as the team (with Medusa it’s new temporary member) departs. -Jim Barwise
Scott: John Buscema and Joe Sinnott whip up an incredible looking issue, totally making up for last month's Ross Andru-athon. A good action tale with a fine moral. What really stands out is the totally groan worthy Johnny Storm. This fricking guy is insufferable. We're introduced to his (thankfully) short- lived red costume and his confession of his "love" of the original Human Torch comics, theorizing that selfsame love is why the cosmic rays made him a new version of the character. Holy crap, really kid? Even Reed doesn't give it much credence. The red costume looks awful and never felt right. Johnny's declaration that they finally look like a team again makes no sense. They never stopped wearing their outfits and, until now, Reed and Johnny had identical costumes. With Medusa now part of the team and wearing a totally different outfit, they look less like a team than before. God, I hate this guy.
Matthew: I hope it is not merely nostalgia that makes me regard this issue (another from the original cluster) as a high point of Roy’s first run on the title, which will be drawing to a close surprisingly soon. To me, the artwork represents the Buscema/Sinnott FF at its finest, with my only caveat being that it’s a shame the complexity of the story—otherwise satisfying in addressing the treatment of the Alpha Primitives—required so many smaller panels, crying out for a little more epic sweep. Yet I think it was wise to wind up the main plotline a few pages early, giving Roy time to resolve the Johnny/Crystal/Pietro triangle while bringing the team back up to fighting strength with Medusa and, in some cases, nifty new uniforms; I love the last panel.
Mark: The only thing I remember about this issue, which I haven't re-read in four decades, was the Big Breakup. More on that presently. Last week I predicted "the uprising of the Alpha Primitives...will lead to a critique on the mortality of a "worker class" bred to serve the elite..." Spot on, but that hardly makes me Nostradamus since Roy Thomas wasn't likely to tub-thump for de facto slavery. Maximus inventing a perpetual motion machine that also "absorbed-harnessed" the Inhumans' "secret guilt" and manifested it as the "hulking grotesquerie Omega" is a real stretch, even given the liberal rubber-science of comics, but we'll give that a pass since it's utilized in service of a sobering Moral Lesson. The art is fab with Big John back, plus we get Johnny's new red uni and Medusa officially subbing in for the departed Sue. Thus Roy ends his short but eventful run by shaking up the status quo. For one change, Mr. Thomas remains unforgiven, even forty years on.
Jim: I think I have to agree with Professor Matthew on this one; the wrap-up of the story is satisfying enough. I even kind of bought the Inhumans realization of their own ignorance in enslaving the Alpha-Primitives. Medusa looks to be an exciting stand-in for Sue in the team for now. Clearly the highlight of the issue for me though, was the choice Crystal has to make between Johnny and Pietro. While the verdict shouldn’t really be a surprise (distance doesn’t always make the heart grow fonder), like any real life breakup, to see it happen hurts. Johnny shows some real maturity in how he takes it, choosing to spare Crystal’s feelings over his own. Love his new threads!
Scott: Crystal is finally given her proper send off, dumping Johnny at last. He takes it well, finally, but he's so full of crap it practically rolls down his sleeves. He name drops Dorrie Evans for the first time in years and while it is sort of sad to see Crystal go with the equally unlikeable Quicksilver (call your sister, a-hole!), I feel nothing for Johnny, because he's such a douche. However, on the plus side, I got a nice laugh out of Reed's repaired costume being unchanged because he has no imagination. When Reed asks why they were asked to appear in "these torn uniforms," I had to marvel at the absurdity. Did they have non-torn uniforms with them? If not, what else would they be wearing?
Mark: Johnny and Crys splitsville was traumatic for me, like the breakup of the Beatles or learning Nixon was a sociopath. I grew up with the exquisite elemental an integral part of the FF and the Torch's main squeeze, and those stories remain one of the few bright spots of Jack Kirby's last couple years. But even at twelve I could read the writing on the (wailing) wall when Johnny and Quicksilver collide and Crystal's only concern is Pietro. The ending is well-done – even as it tore my guts out- with Johnny taking the high road, lying about dating Dorrie Evans for Crys' benefit, but the last panel told the real story. Johnny was devastated. So was I, but unlike the Torch, I wasn't about to let Crys go without a fight. For more on my quixotic campaign to reunite my fave couple, tune in for the Sunday Special!
The Monster of Frankenstein 2
"Bride of the Monster"
Story by Gary Friedrich
Art by Mike Ploog
The backstory of Frankenstein's Monster continues as the creature, now freed from his icy prison aboard Robert Walton's ship, is saved from the fearful crew by Walton himself. We learn of the Monster's trials and tribulations from killing and eating a bear to his all-too-brief friendship with the blind man. We learn how he reconnected with Victor, and convinced his creator to make him a mate. Unfortunately, no sooner than the blushing bride gets up and walks, Victor recognizes the error of his ways and kills her. The monster, after discovering the remains of his would-be mate, kills a friend of Victor's who stumbles across him, a murder for which Victor was held responsible and jailed. The story is interrupted when Walton's ship crashes into an iceberg! - John Scoleri
Peter: I read this series years ago when it was first published but I can't, for the life of me, remember which direction it heads in. Friedrich's wrapping up the concepts he's pulled from the original novel and is about to build on that foundation in a dazzling way. Mike Ploog's art is near-perfect (a few too many spittly-Wrightsonesque mouths maybe) and I can't help but be enthralled by the epic scope of the narrative. How long that enchantment holds is anyone's guess (after all, we're heading for a Tomb of Dracula crossover in a year or so) but for now this is the best monster strip the company has going.
John: More great art as the intriguing tale of Frankenstein continues. Based on the cover, you might reasonably expect the bride to play a larger role in the story, but she's relegated to just a few pages from creation to destruction. Still, it is a nice cover...Scott: Another classy issue, most of which I followed through the Power Records adaptation. It follows the classic "Bride Of" story while being completely different. Mike Ploog is at his best here. Real art, peeps. It's what makes reading such a pleasure.
We, the generous Professors at MU have got a special Christmas Day surprise for you when Professor Joe takes a look at a rare slice of Marvel History. March 1973 (Part Two) will arrive on New Year's Day. Happy Holidays to all you Marvel Zombies out there!
I am no fan of Friedrich, but his first issues of Frankenstein must be among his best work. (Always assuming Ploog didn't just took the original and broke it down and Friedrich only wrote some dialogue. You never know with adaptions.) Still, great, moody artwork and a solid version of the novel and not the countless movies.
ReplyDeleteBarry Smith's last Conan is a work of beauty. I only have it as a b/w in the Essential, but I think it even is better in this version. The details he put into the backgrounds are incredible, and of all the snake in the tower sequences in Conan this is one of the best realized. To think that he just got the same page rate like everybody else. It is also astonishing how fast he grew as an artist. If you compare this with the first Conan issues there is a vast difference.
And Thomas was right to choose Howard over Carter. I have a soft spot for some of Carter's work, but Thongor is thoroughly derivative of Burroughs and Howard, and the comic version works even less then the novels.
And Happy Holidays to all Faculty members.
I wonder what would have happened if Johnny Storm had been a Torchy fan as a lad.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with you, Jim, that Medusa is an exciting stand-in for Sue Storm! As for your remark, Peter, that it is presumptuous of Medusa to take over the Sue Storm slot without asking permission first, she knows that the FF need a replacement and Medusa is just proving to the team that she is a confident female who is ready to go on day one. They apparently have no problem whatsoever with her replacing Sue. Remember, it was Sue who walked out on her own. She was not asked to leave. Crystal could have replaced Sue and maybe should have, but Marvel chose Medusa and that is fine with me. Medusa has displayed more of a take charge attitude from her first appearance in FF #36 than Sue Storm has ever done up to the present issue #132.
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