Fantastic Four #89
Title: The Madness of the Mole Man!
Writer: Stan Lee
Artist: Jack Kirby
Fantastic Four: Reed Richards, Ben Grimm, Johnny Storm, Crystal
Villain: Mole Man, Slaver (Skrull)
Regulars: Susan Richards
In the last issue the Fantastic Four were blinded by the Mole Man. They valiantly battle, until finally a shock from the Mole Man's staff restores their sight.
Do you remember the Thing's battle cry? It's clobbering time!
It's unusual for Johnny Storm to spout philosophy. He must be possessed by the spirit of Stan Lee. He explains to the Mole Man that you should never give up, whatever bad luck life has thrown at you.
Meanwhile, a Skrull space ship is approaching Earth, captained by someone who calls himself the Slaver.
Amazing Spider-Man #75
Title: Death without warning!
Writer: Stan Lee
Artist: John Romita
Villain: Man-Mountain Marko, Silvermane, Lizard
Spider-Man fights with the Maggia to free Dr. Curt Connors and his family. Using a formula made from the inscriptions on the stone tablet, the Maggia's leader, Silvermane, has become young and strong again. He fights with Spider-Man, but he steadily becomes younger, first a teenager, then a child, and finally turning into nothing.
Under the stress of captivity, Dr. Connors turns into the Lizard again.
The Crazy Credits say that Artie Simek has sweet lips. Is that meant as praise, or is Stan Lee saying that Artie has been chewing chocolate bars at work?
Captain America #116
Title: Far worse than death!
Writer: Stan Lee
Artist: Gene Colan
Villain: Red Skull, Exiles (General Ching, Iron Hand Hauptmann, Cadavus, Gruning,Krushki, Baldini)
Regulars: Rick Jones, Sharon Carter
Guests: Avengers (Yellowjacket, Wasp, Goliath, Vision), Jarvis
Captain America is trapped in the Red Skull's body. He goes to the Avengers to ask for help, but they don't believe him and attack him, Only Sharon Carter has a slight suspicion who he might be.
Using the power of the Cosmic Cube, the Red Skull (now in Captain America's body) sends Captain America to the island where his former servants the Exiles are located, knowing that they hate him for betraying him.
We only see the Exiles in one panel. I had to look up their names, because I've forgotten them. As villains they're too generic for me to remember them.
This story is out of sync with the current adventures of the Avengers. It probably takes place before Avengers #66 (July 1969).
The Avengers #67
Title: We stand at Armageddon!
Writer: Roy Thomas
Artist: Barry Smith
Avengers: Thor, Iron Man, Goliath, Vision, Yellowjacket, Wasp
Villain: Ultron-6
Guests: Dum Dum Dugan, Gabe Jones, Countess Valentina
Ulton-6 is undefeatable in his new adamantium body. Added to this, he can now fly. He defeats the Avengers, then returns to his original hide out. He wants to destroy New York City with a nuclear explosion.
The Vision realises that he helped rebuild Ultron last issue due to programming inserted when Ultron made him. To make amends he attacks Ultron, but he's not strong enough to succeed.
Iron Man #16
Title: Of Beasts and Men!
Writer: Archie Goodwin
Artist: George Tuska
Villain: Unicorn, Red Ghost
Regulars: Jasper Sitwell
Guests: Nick Fury, Gabe Jones
After the Red Ghost attempts to destroy them, Iron Man and the Unicorn team up to escape. In Africa the Red Ghost treats apes with cosmic rays to give them super-powers. One of the apes, which he calls Beta, develops the power to mentally control people. This ape turns against the Red Ghost and tells him the apes don't want to become his slaves; they want to live in peace in Africa.
The Unicorn flies away, leaving Iron Man to fend for himself.
Thor #167
Title: This world renounced!
Writer: Stan Lee
Artist: Jack Kirby
Villain: Loki, Karnilla, Haag, Galactus
Regulars: Odin, Sif, Balder, Heimdall
As punishment for letting himself be overcome by warrior madness, Thor is sent on a mission to find Galactus and bring him back to Asgard. Balder requests permission to protect Earth in Thor's absence, which Odin grants. Sif pleads on Thor's behalf, so Odin allows one boon: Thor can visit Earth once more before embarking on his quest.
Karnilla's servant Haag creates a clay doll which can be used to harm Balder. Loki strikes the doll, and Balder collapses on Earth. Thor changes into Doctor Blake to operate on him. Loki attacks Doctor Blake and steals Thor's hammer while it's in the form of a walking stick. Odin appears and tells Loki that whoever holds the hammer must search for Galactus, so Loki throws it away. Doctor Blake retrieves the stick, operates on Balder, then turns back into Thor and embarks on the quest.
This page is one of the best portraits I've seen drawn by Jack Kirby. What do you think?
Daredevil #55
Title: Call him Fear
Writer: Roy Thomas
Artist: Gene Colan
Villain: Mr. Fear (Starr Saxon)
Regulars: Foggy Nelson, Karen Page
After being defeated by Mr. Fear last issue, Daredevil is still suffering from sporadic fear attacks. He has to wait a few days before he can challenge Mr. Fear again.
Daredevil has deduced that it isn't the real Mr. Fear, it's Starr Saxon who has killed him and taken his place. He goes into battle without his billy club. He realises that Starr Saxon put Mr. Fear's last fear pellets into his billy club when he had it a few issues ago. I can't remember what issue that was. Can anyone help me?
Sub-Mariner #16
Title: The sea that time forgot!
Writer: Roy Thomas
Artist: Marie Severin
Villain: Tiger Shark
Regulars: Vashti, Dorma
Isn't that a beautiful splash page drawn by Marie Severin? After a slow start she's become a magnificent artist.
Tiger Shark has entered a place called Sargasso. It's inhabited by trapped sailors who have lived for centuries, from ancient Egyptians to Nazi sea captains. Tiger Shark recruits them to attack the surface world. The attack fails, because the sailors revert to their natural ages as soon as they leave the mists of Sargasso.
The Incredible Hulk #118
Title: A Clash of Titans
Writer: Stan Lee
Artist: Herb Trimpe
Villain: Mistress Fara
Guests: Sub-Mariner, Dorma, Vashti
Lady Dorma finds Bruce Banner floating unconscious in the sea and takes him back to Atlantis for medical treatment. She gives him a pill to enable him to breathe underwater for 24 hours.
Mistress Fara is a woman who has a crush on Prince Namor. When she sees Dorma with Bruce Banner, she hatches a plan. She tells Namor that Dorma has brought a surface dweller to Atlantis to scheme against him. It's amazing that Namor is so fast to believe such an unlikely story.
Bruce Banner turns into the Hulk, and he fights with Sub-Mariner. It seems like the little pill remained effective after his change. During the fight Fara attempts to kill Dorma, but a wall falls on her and crushes her to death.
The Hulk flies to the surface and falls onto a small island, where he reverts to Bruce Banner.
X-Men #59
Title: Do or die, Baby!
Writer: Roy Thomas
Artist: Neal Adams
X-Men: Cyclops, Marvel Girl, Angel, Beast, Iceman
Villain: Sentinels, Dr. Lykos
Regulars: Alex Summers
Guests: Quicksilver, Scarlet Witch, Toad, Mastermind, Blob, Unus
The Sentinels continue to capture mutants with ease, including Quicksilver, Scarlet Witch, Toad, Mastermind, Blob and Unus. The Sentinels adapt to the powers of the mutants they're dealing with, so Cyclops, Marvel Girl and Beast put on the uniforms of Quicksilver, Scarlet Witch and Toad to confuse them.
Larry Trask's mutant power is revealed as clairvoyance.
When Judge Chalmers is injured, the Sentinels cease their fight, because they say that protecting humans is a higher priority than fighting mutants. Judge Chalmers says that the Sentinels can be defeated with reason. Cyclops tells them that mutants are created by the Sun's radiation, so humans can only be protected by neutralising this radiation. The Sentinels fly into the Sun and are destroyed.
Let's hope those silly robots never come back again!
Captain Marvel #15
Title: When a galaxy beckons
Writer: Gary Friedrich
Artist: Tom Sutton
That's an interesting splash page drawn by Tom Sutton. The credits are spread all over the page. Even Jean Izzo, Artie Simek's daughter, gets her own panel.
After giving Captain Marvel great powers in Captain Marvel #11, Zo now asks for something in return. He wants Captain Marvel to destroy the Kree Empire by putting a bomb at the foot of the Statue of Tam-Bor. Captain Marvel is in a dilemma. He doesn't want to destroy his own world, and he doesn't understand why Zo is asking this of him. Zo seems to be the supreme being, so he could do the job himself.
Zo teleports Captain Marvel to the Kree homeworld. He travels to Tam-Bor, hoping to find a solution that doesn't involve destroying everything.
Silver Surfer #7
Title: The Heir of Frankenstein!
Writer: Stan Lee
Artist: John Buscema
Villain: Baron von Frankenstein, Frankenstein's Monster
Regulars: Shalla Bal (vision)
Guests: Doctor Doom (vision)
Stan Lee adds to the Frankenstein mythology in his own unique style.
In Transylvania, Baron von Frankenstein's modern day descendent is still attempting to create life, aided by his misshapen servant Borgo. After his other attempts fail, he creates a machine that can duplicate another being.
The Baron tricks the Silver Surfer into entering the machine by telling him it will end crime and war.
A duplicate of the Silver Surfer emerges, after the Baron cries out the famous words, "He lives! He lives!" Could Stan lee get any cornier? That's why I love him so much.
The duplicate is ordered to destroy the villagers. The real Silver Surfer battles to protect them. They're equally matched, but eventually the duplicate's energy fades away and he implodes.
The villagers attack the castle. Baron von Frankenstein shoots at them. Borgo attempts to pull the gun out of his hands, and the two fall to their deaths together.
Title: I, the Gargoyle!
Writer: Stan Lee
Artist: Howard Purcell
This story is a redrawn version of a story in Amazing Adult Fantasy #12, published in May 1962, with the Watcher added as the narrator.
A rich man called Alan Swan is a benefactor to mankind. The problem is that no woman can love him because he's ugly. He volunteers for a one way mission to search for life at the Earth's core. When he arrives he finds a race of beings who are almost blind. They recognise only inner beauty, so he finds a woman who can love him.
Other comics published this month:
Millie the Model #173 (Stan Lee, Stan Goldberg)
Mad About Millie #3 (Stan Lee, Stan Goldberg)
Chili #4 (Stan Lee, Stan Goldberg)
Rawhide Kid #71 (Larry Lieber, Larry Lieber)
Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos #69 (Gary Friedrich, Dick Ayers)
Note: The Sgt. Fury annual released this month contains reprints only.
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