Amazing Adventures #2
Title: Friend against Friend!
Writer: Jack Kirby
Artist: Jack Kirby
Inhumans: Black Bolt, Medusa, Gorgon, Karnak, Triton, Crystal, Lockjaw
Rebels: Maximus, Stallior, Timberius, Leonus, Aerio
Guests: Reed Richards, Sue Richards, Ben Grimm, Johnny Storm, Franklin Richards
Black Bolt uses Lockjaw to invade the Baxter Building and attack the Fantastic Four, of whom only Ben Grimm and Johnny Storm are at home. Medusa's sister Crystal is with Johnny, not wearing her Fantastic Four costume
Strangely, Medusa considers Crystal to be her sister. Jack Kirby is getting confused again. He might have been a brilliant artist, but he wasn't able to remember characters well enough to be a writer. Or maybe he was just rusty after taking a break for 10 years. At least he got the names of the rebel Inhumans correct in this issue.
Triton is missing in the attack. Black Bolt has sent him to check up on Maximus. When he arrives, he discovers that it was Maximus who fired the missiles at the Grand Refuge of the Inhumans, not the Fantastic Four. Duh! Could there ever have been any doubt? The Inhumans and the Fantastic Four make peace again, as if nothing has ever happened.
Title: The Young Warriors!
Writer: Gary Friedrich
Artist: John Buscema
Villain: gangsters
The story begins with Madame Natasha sharing a romantic encounter with a film director called Roman Wilson. Look at him. He's obviously based on Roman Polanski.
The son of Natasha's housekeeper is the leader of a gang that calls themselves the Young Warriors. They want to occupy a building in Spanish Harlem to use it as a soup kitchen for the poor Puerto Rican children. The building currently belongs to a crooked councillor who belongs to the Mafia. (I use that name for the sake of convenience. I know they don't like the name, and prefer to call themselves the family).
Natasha gets involved in a fight when the gangsters attack, but the Young Warriors also have to leave because of a court order.
A sympathetic reporter from the New York Press called Paul Hamilton warns Natasha that many consider her a criminal. So she's going the way of Spider-Man?
The first two issues of Amazing Adventures were published in consecutive months, but from now on it will settle into a bimonthly schedule, so that it can alternate with Astonishing Tales, which skips a month in September.
Amazing Spider-Man #88
Title: Unmasked at last!
Writer: Stan Lee
Artist: John Romita
Villain: Doctor Octopus
Regulars: Gwen Stacy, Captain Stacy, Harry Osborn, J. Jonah Jameson, John Jameson, Joe Robertson, Betty Brant
Doctor Octopus' mental control over his mechanical arms is so strong that he can summon them to himself when he's in prison halfway across the country. Spider-Man sees the arms walking through New York, but he can't pursue them, because he has to save people from the falling rubble caused by buildings being damaged by the walking arms.
Doctor Octopus hitches a lift on a plane, not knowing that it contains a foreign diplomat, General Su. He demands $10 million ransom money. J. Jonah Jameson is also on board the plane, hoping for an interview.
When the plane arrives at JFK Airport, Spider-Man enters it to challenge Doctor Octopus. He rescues the general and the other people on the plane. Doctor Octopus tries to escape in the plane, but he's unable to operate it, and it explodes shortly after take off.
Sub-Mariner #29
Title: Fear is the Hunter!
Writer: Roy Thomas
Artist: Sal Buscema
Villain: Huntsman
Regulars: Diane Arliss, Dorma, Vashti
Guests: Hercules, Zeus
This issue is the conclusion of the Hercules backup story in Ka-Zar #1.
The Huntsman hypnotises Sub-Mariner to fight Hercules on his behalf. I'm not sure why, because in the Ka-Zar #1 he seemed to be more than a match for Hercules without help.
The spell is broken, and Sub-Mariner aids Hercules in his fight. Together they defeat the Huntsman. Watching from Olympus, Zeus is impressed by Sub-Mariner's nobility and says that he'll allow Hercules to spend time on Earth. He removes Sub-Mariner's memory of all that happened.
Fantastic Four #102
This is the last issue of the Fantastic Four drawn by Jack Kirby, after 108 issues (102 regular comics plus six annuals). Actually, this story should have appeared in issue #103, but Stan Lee rejected the comic that Jack had drawn for issue #102 as inadequate. The story that should have appeared in this issue was redrawn for Fantastic Four #108 by John Buscema and John Romita, using original pages by Kirby where appropriate.
A lot has been written about the Jack Kirby Lost Story, which I shan't repeat here. I'll just add a few thoughts of my own. It seems very strange to me that an excellent artist like Jack Kirby should deliver poor work. Is this because he was planning to leave Marvel and didn't put his full effort into it? Alternatively, did Jack just have a bad day, and the insult of his work being rejected by Stan Lee was one of the reasons he quit? As I said in what I wrote last month, I don't think the full story behind Jack Kirby's departure from Marvel has ever been told. Maybe it can never be told, because there was bitterness in Jack's mind that he never revealed to anybody. All I can say, 49 years after the event, is that Jack's departure from Marvel was unnecessary. It's true that he went on to create wonderful stories for DC, but he could just as well have taken on more writing responsibilities at Marvel... if he had paid more attention to the names and relationships of the characters.
Title: The Strength of the Sub-Mariner!
Writer: Stan Lee
Artist: Jack Kirby
Fantastic Four: Reed Richards, Susan Richards, Ben Grimm, Johnny Storm
Villains: Magneto, Sub-Mariner
Regulars: Crystal, Franklin Richards
In the splash page Crystal is wearing her civilian clothing, but later in the story she slips into her Fantastic Four uniform again. So is she a member or isn't she? I don't think she knows that herself.
Sub-Mariner finds a man lying unconscious on an island overrun with prehistoric creatures. It's Magneto, who was stranded in Ka-Zar's Savage Land in X-Men #63. He's taken back to Atlantis to recover. Strangely, he's shown breathing underwater. There are three possibilities:
1. He was given a fancy underwater breathing pill by Prince Namor.
2. His magnetic powers somehow give him air to breathe when he's wearing his helmet.
3. Stan Lee got confused and forgot that Magneto was underwater.
My money is on number three.
Magneto finds devices in Atlantis that magnify his power. He's able to wreck havoc in New York. Reed Richards recognises that the magnetic rays are coming from Atlantis. He fires a weak concussion missile as a warning, but Namor considers it to be an attack. A fleet of ships is dispatched in response.
Thor #180
Title: When Gods go mad!
Writer: Stan Lee
Artist: Neal Adams
Villain: Loki, Mephisto
Regulars: Odin, Balder, Sif, Fandral, Hogun, Volstagg
After the departure of Jack Kirby, this is the first issue of Thor drawn by Neal Adams. A new era of greatness can be expected.
Loki, now in Thor's body, is causing random damage in New York City. Thor, now in Loki's body, attempts to stop him. The battle is interrupted by Odin, who is intent on punishing Loki for usurping the leadership of Asgard in Thor #175. He casts Loki into Hades, not realising that it's really Thor in Loki's body. Hades is ruled by Mephisto, who we last saw in Silver Surfer #17.
Now the mythologies are getting mixed up. Hades is the Greek kingdom of the dead, Mephisto is a Germanic version of the Devil, and Odin is a Norse God. I'll accept the mixture. If there's a discrepancy between world mythologies and Stan Lee's stories, I'll accept Stan's words as correct.
Sif returns to Asgard to tell Odin he's made a mistake, but Odin can't be disturbed because he's brooding. Really! He picks the most awkward times. Odin's Grand Vizier sends Sif and the Warriors Three to Hades to face Mephisto and rescue Thor.
Captain America #129
Title: The Vengeance of the Red Skull
Writer: Stan Lee
Artist: Gene Colan
Villain: Red Skull
The Red Skull is watching Steve Rogers on his viewing screen. He wants to start a world war by assassinating King Assab of Irabia and putting the blame on Captain America. By changing street signs he lures them both into the town of Ashville.
The Red Skull wants to launch the king into outer space. Why not just kill him? Captain America manages to save the king and push the Red Skull into the space rocket as it takes off.
There seems to be a new policy of Marvel changing names of real people and institutions in recent comics. Why call the country Irabia instead of Saudi Arabia? In Captain America #128 the biker gang was called Satan's Angels instead of Hell's Angels. In this month's Black Widow story Roman Polanski is called Roman Wilson.
The Incredible Hulk #131
Title: A Titan stalks the Tenements!
Writer: Roy Thomas
Artist: Herb Trimpe
Regulars: General Ross, Major Talbot, Betty Ross, Jim Wilson
Guests: Iron Man
The Hulk is still searching for Bruce Banner. He meets a 15-year-old thief on the run, Jim Wilson, and asks him to fetch Banner.
Iron Man offers General Ross his services in capturing the Hulk. With the help of Jim Wilson, he ambushes the Hulk, but he's not strong enough to overcome him. General Ross fires the Gammatron at the Hulk. It weakens him, but that's not enough. Bruce Banner jumps into the Gammatron rays, and he merges with the Hulk again.
Iron Man #29
Title: Save the people, save the country!
Writer: Mimi Gold
Artist: Don Heck
Villain: Overseer
The writer of this story is Mimi Gold. She's the first woman to write a super-hero story for Marvel. It's curious that she's only credited as M. Gold, as if Stan Lee wants to cover up the fact that the writer is a woman. She was a secretary at Marvel from 1969 to 1972, and she only wrote five stories during this time. Three were horror anthology stories. The other two were this Iron Man issue and a Black Widow story in Amazing Adventures.
Second generation letterer Jean Izzo has slipped up. She's written "it's" when she should have written "its". Artie Simek needs to tell off his little girl.
While out at sea in the Caribbean, Tony Stark rescues a small boat containing political refugees. They come from a small island nation whose people have been enslaved by a dictator called the Overseer.
Tony flies to the island as Iron Man to investigate. The Overseer is actually a giant robot, against which the inhabitants are helpless. Iron Man defeats the Overseer and the man who's operating it.
The Avengers #80
Title: The Coming of Red Wolf!
Writer: Roy Thomas
Artist: John Buscema
Avengers: Captain America, Thor, Iron Man, Black Panther, Goliath, Vision, Quicksilver, Scarlet Witch
Villain: Cornelius Van Lunt, Jason Birch
Vision is wandering the streets of New York City after quitting the Avengers last issue. He sees someone dressed as an Indian – today it's usual to call them Native Americans – attacking a defenceless man. Vision has no problems overcoming him and carries him back to Avengers Mansion, accompanied by the Indian's wolf.
The man tells his story. He grew up on an Indian reservation, angry at the abuse of the white settlers who looked down on his people. A businessman called Cornelius Van Lunt, who we already saw in Avengers #77, attempted to buy the land from his father. When he refused, a hitman called Jason Birch shot his father dead. The Indian was then possessed by the spirit of the Red Wolf and given the power to avenge his father. The man he was attacking in New York was Jason Birch.
Three of the Avengers (Goliath, Vision and Scarlet Witch) accompany Red Wolf to find Jason Birch and bring him to justice without killing him. The other Avengers remain behind, because they've heard that Zodiac has reformed after being defeated in Avengers #72.
Daredevil #68
Title: Phoenix and the Fighter
Writer: Roy Thomas
Artist: Gene Colan
Villain: Kragg (boxing promoter)
Regulars: Foggy Nelson
This is one of the weaker Daredevil stories written by Roy Thomas. I'm sure he wrote it deliberately as a homage to Daredevil's origin story, but it doesn't succeed.
A boxer called Kid Gawaine has been bought by a group called Phoenix, led by a man called Kragg. They want him to take a fall in a match, to make them enough money to pursue their political goals. If he doesn't agree they have a backup plan. They have a machine that can make him temporarily blind.
Daredevil takes Gawaine's place in the ring. The machine has no effect on him. He and Gawaine take out the gang.
Silver Surfer #18
Title: To smash the Inhumans!
Writer: Stan Lee
Artist: Jack Kirby
Villain: Maximus, Stallior, Timberius, Leonus, Aerio
Guests: Black Bolt, Medusa, Gorgon, Karnak, Triton, Lockjaw
The Silver Surfer plunges to the ground after battling SHIELD in the last issue, and he's immediately under attack from the rebel Inhumans who follow Maximus. After a short fight they leave him alone.
He flies to the nearby Great Refuge. Black Bolt wants to greet him peacefully, but Medusa and Karnak attack him in haste. The Silver Surfer is knocked unconscious by Karnak, and when he wakes up he attacks all around him. Simultaneously, Maximus launches an attack on the Great Refuge. Maximus is driven away, and the Silver Surfer grows weary of fighting and leaves.
The Silver Surfer swears he will change and become savage. But.....
This was the last issue of the Silver Surfer's series. Apart from a one-off in 1982, he won't have another series until 1987. Why did the series stop so abruptly?
There's an article about John Buscema on this month's Bullpen Bulletin page, which has relevance to the Silver Surfer.
That seems to be promising a new direction for the Silver Surfer with Herb Trimpe as the new artist. Why didn't it happen? What happened over the next 30 days to change Stan Lee's mind about continuing? Only a few months ago the Silver Surfer was Marvel's best selling comic, and it couldn't possibly have slumped badly enough to deserve cancellation for economic reasons. Were there differences of opinion with Herb Trimpe? Or did Stan Lee just not have enough time?
Other comics published this month:
Mad About Millie #15 (Stan Lee, Stan Goldberg)
My Love #7 (Stan Lee, John Buscema)
Tower of Shadows #7 (Allyn Brodsky, Barry Windsor-Smith)
No comments:
Post a Comment
Tick the box "Notify me" to receive notification of replies.