Fantastic Four #64
Title: The Sentry Sinister!
Writer: Stan Lee
Artist: Jack Kirby
Villain: Sentry 459
Regulars: Crystal, Triton, Lockjaw
The story begins with Reed Richards blocking the door to the Negative Zone to prevent anyone crossing to Earth from the other side. After completing this task he promises his teammates a vacation. Ben Grimm picks the spot by blindfolding himself and throwing a dart at a map. He hits a small island in the Pacific Ocean. As we already know, chance is weighted in Marvel comics. This island is the place where an alien race called the Kree left a sentry thousands of years ago. The cosy vacation turns into a vicious fight to the death.
The battle with the Sentry gives the Thing the chance to shout his battle cry: It's clobbering time!
The Crazy Credits say that Artie Simek's lettering is lethargic. Please, Stan, stop picking on adorable Artie. He's a valuable asset to the bullpen. If you really must pick on someone, insult Irving Forbush instead.
Amazing Spider-Man #50
Title: Spider-Man No More!
Writer: Stan Lee
Artist: John Romita
Villain: Kingpin
Regulars: Aunt May, Mary Jane Watson, Gwen Stacy, Harry Osborn, J. Jonah Jameson, Betty Brant, Frederick Foswell
Spider-Man stops a robbery, but the couple that he protects is afraid of him. They've been influenced by J. Jonah Jameson's editorials in the Daily Bugle. When he returns home he finds his Aunt May has been taken ill, and she's worried because she couldn't reach him. Peter Parker makes the decision to give up being Spider-Man.
His costume is found in a trash can, which is hardly surprising, considering how badly he hid it. A boy takes the costume to the Daily Bugle, and J. Jonah Jameson lets everyone know Spider-Man has quit. A new crime lord called the Kingpin rises up and takes control of New York's scattered gangs. The increase in the crime rate causes Peter Parker to rethink, and he becomes Spider-Man again.
Strange Tales #158
Title: Final Encounter!
Writer: Jim Steranko
Artist: Jim Steranko
Villain: Baron Von Strucker, Hydra
Regulars: Laura Brown
Nick Fury defeats Hydra by placing the Death Spore inside the protective shield before it explodes, destroying Hydra Island and everyone on it.
The Crazy Credits say that Sam Rosen lost the comic's script after finishing the lettering. That's not too bad. It would have been worse if he'd lost the script before doing the lettering.
Title: The Sands of Death
Writer: Roy Thomas
Artist: Marie Severin
Villain: Living Tribunal, Dormammu (flashback), Umar (flashback), Zom (flashback)
The Living Tribunal has judged that the Earth must be destroyed as a punishment for Doctor Strange awakening Zom in Strange Tales #156. Doctor Strange challenges the Living Tribunal to a battle, but he has no chance of success. The Living Tribunal sets Doctor Strange a challenge: if he can restore his badly burnt cloak of levitation the Earth will be spared.
Marie Severin is finally drawing good artwork. She needed a few issues to warm up, and it was worth the wait. Various parts of her full page artwork on page 8 were used on the cover of Pink Floyd's album "A Saucerful of Secrets" in 1968.
Tales of Suspense #91
Title: The Uncanny Challenge of the Crusher!
Writer: Stan Lee
Artist: Gene Colan
Villain: Crusher
Regulars: Happy Hogan, Pepper Potts
A scientist in a small country located on an island in South America invents a potion to make his president powerful enough to conquer the world. The president doesn't trust him, so he makes the scientist drink it himself. He grows to more than seven foot tall and becomes heavy and bulletproof. Supposedly he doesn't have exceptional strength, but his weight makes him powerful.
The scientist, who now calls himself the Crusher, goes to America to challenge Iron Man. He can only be defeated by a ray that increases his weight even more, making him sink into the ground.
At the end of the story Happy Hogan and Pepper Potts announce that they've just got married. Should I call her Pepper Hogan now? Somehow it doesn't sound right. Maybe they're a modern couple, and Happy has taken her last name. That would make him Happy Potts.
Title: The Last Defeat!
Writer: Stan Lee
Artist: Gil Kane
Villain: Red Skull
The Red Skull steals the XPT-1, an experimental American submarine, by hypnotising the crew to obey him. What he doesn't know is that the experiment is complete and the submarine is on a timer to auto-destruct as soon as it's far from land.
Tales to Astonish #93
Title: The Monarch and the Monster!
Writer: Roy Thomas
Artist: Dan Adkins
Villain: It
Regulars: Dorma
Sub-Mariner continues his battle with It, spelt with a capital I because it's his name. Comics are lettered in capitals only, so whenever the creature's name is used it's in bold italic lettering, i.e. IT. Wouldn't it have been easier to think up a better name for this undersea monster? Never mind, this issue is the last time we'll ever see it.
Sub-Mariner is of the opinion that it's a robot created by the surface world. He eventually defeats it, despite being weakened by its radioactive body. When he swims back to Atlantis to be healed he swears revenge on the human race.
Title: He who strikes the Silver Surfer
Writer: Stan Lee
Artist: Marie Severin
Villain: Silver Surfer
The Hulk attacks the Silver Surfer, and they battle briefly, but the Silver Surfer flies away, finding the battle boring and unnecessary. While the Hulk is recovering he's attacked by policemen armed with flame-throwers. The Silver Surfer sees this and returns to rescue him. The Hulk misinterprets this, and the fight begins again.
The Hulk is knocked unconscious, so the Silver Surfer reads his mind and finds out how he became a monster. He prepares to heal the Hulk by taking the gamma rays out of his body, but the Hulk wakes up and strikes out. The Silver Surfer flies away, leaving the Hulk as he was.
This story has my vote for best comic of the month. It's a brilliantly told story by Stan Lee, and Marie Severin's artwork is excellent.
Thor #142
Title: The Scourge of the Super-Skrull!
Writer: Stan Lee
Artist: Jack Kirby
Villain: Loki, Super-Skrull
Regulars: Odin, Sif, Balder
After last month's dull story, Stan Lee has written another masterpiece. Loki, who we last saw in Thor Annual #2, is unable to challenge Thor directly because he's been banished by Odin to the far reaches of space. He influences the Super-Skrull, also banished by his people, to travel to Earth and attack Thor. We last saw the Super-Skrull in the utterly chaotic Fantastic Four Annual #3, and before that in Fantastic Four #32. Thor defeats the Super-Skrull and sends him back into space.
Meanwhile, Odin sends Balder and Sif to investigate the plans of a warlike people called the Enchanters.
Title: We who are about to die!
Writer: Stan Lee
Artist: Jack Kirby
Gods: Thor, Fandrel, Hogun
Thor and the Warriors Three continue their battle against Mogul. Actually, it's only the Warriors Two. We don't see Volstagg, because he has left to have a meal. Everyone knows that you can't fight on an empty stomach, and the bigger the stomach the longer the meal lasts.
The Avengers #42
Title: The Plan and the Power!
Writer: Roy Thomas
Artist: John Buscema
Avengers: Captain America, Hawkeye, Goliath, Wasp, Quicksilver, Scarlet Witch
Villain: Diablo, Dragon Man
Regulars: Black Widow, Hercules
Guests: Reed Richards, Ben Grimm
Hawkeye, Quicksilver, the Scarlet Witch and Hercules travel to Transylvania to rescue Goliath and the Wasp, who have been captured by Diablo. When they arrive Hercules fights with Dragon Man while the three Avengers attempt to attack Diablo. They first have to deal with Goliath, who has been forced to serve Diablo because the Wasp is being held as a hostage.
Captain America returns after his battle with the Red Skull in Tales Of Suspense #88 to #90.
Meanwhile, the Black Widow has been fighting with her captors in the Far East Communist country, but she eventually succumbs to them.
Roy Thomas has taken over as the regular writer for the Avengers, but Stan Lee refuses to let go. He insists on making comments in his capacity as editor.
This is the second comment. We need Stan's humour.
This is the third comment.
This is the fourth comment.
This is the fifth comment. Phew! Stan has been busy this month.
X-Men #34
Title: War in a World of Darkness!
Writer: Roy Thomas
Artist: Dan Adkins
X-Men: Cyclops, Angel, Beast, Iceman, Marvel Girl
Villain: Tyrannus, Mole Man
Ted Roberts tells his fellow student Jean Grey, who he suspects of being Marvel Girl, that his brother Ralph has been captured and taken below the Earth by Tyrannus. Tyrannus wants to use the cobalt alloy that Ralph has developed to make more powerful robots. The X-Men go down the pit left by Tyrannus, but instead of Tyrannus they encounter the Mole Man.
Tyrannus was last seen in Tales To Astonish #81.
Mole Man was last seen in Tales Of Suspense #88.
Marvel Girl threatens to put Iceman and Angel over her knee if they don't get some sleep. I would have preferred to be put over her knee, but that's just me.
This is the first comic lettered by Jerry Feldmann, and the Crazy Credits immediately poke fun of him. Roy Thomas and Dan Adkins are praised for reaching new artistic heights, while Jerry Feldman is said to have produced the same old lettering. What sort of new lettering does Stan Lee want? Chinese?
We've known for a long time that Jean Grey secretly loves Scott Summers. Is that the reason why she accidentally calls Warren Scott?
Maybe not. A moment later Bobby Drake calls Warren Scotty. This looks more like a blunder, either by Roy Thomas or the new letterer on the block.
Daredevil #30
Title: If there should be a Thunder God!
Writer: Stan Lee
Artist: Gene Colan
Villain: Cobra, Mr. Hyde
Regulars: Foggy Nelson, Karen Page
Guests: Thor
Matt Murdock hatches up a plan that fits his multiple personality disorder. He hears that Cobra and Mr. Hyde have been carrying out a series of robberies. He doesn't know how to find them, but he knows that they're Thor's enemies, so he decides to lure them out by pretending to be Thor. He buys a Thor outfit from a costume shop that he can wear over his Daredevil costume.
The plan backfires. Thor sees him and thinks that it's a villain who's impersonating him. They have a short fight, but Daredevil is no match for Thor. When Daredevil reveals who he is, Thor lets him go on condition that he doesn't impersonate him again. Cobra and Mr. Hyde were watching the fight between Thor and Daredevil, so as soon as Thor flies away they attack Daredevil. Mr. Hyde throws a liquid at Daredevil's eyes which is intended to make him blind. Daredevil is already blind, so it has another effect. It takes away his radar senses.
To be continued.....
P.S. Cobra and Mr. Hyde were last seen in the chaotic gathering of super-villains in Fantastic Four Annual #3. Before that they were seen in Journey Into Mystery #111.
Other comics published this month:
Millie the Model #151 (Dennis O'Neil, Stan Goldberg)
Kid Colt Outlaw #135 (Sol Brodsky, Herb Trimpe)
Two Gun Kid #88 (Roy Thomas, Ogden Whitney)
Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos #44 (Gary Friedrich, John Severin)
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