This month a new comic begins that's called Marvel Team-Up. It will run for 150 issues, up until February 1985, plus various annuals. However, I have made the decision to declare the series non-canon. This is not an arbitrary decision. My reasoning is as follows:
Marvel is all about continuity in a shared universe. Every hero meets and interacts with the other heroes. At the same time, their own personal stories develop month by month.
1. Marvel Team-Up was created as a second comic for Spider-Man, Marvel's most popular character. The problem is that all the personal developments in Spider-Man's life take place in his original comic, Amazing Spider-Man. The Marvel Team-Up stories are action adventures which add no emotional development to the character.
2. At the same time, no attempt is made to synchronise the stories with the comics of the guest stars, such as the Human Torch in this issue. If any stories just happen to "fit in" with other comics, it's by accident, not by design.
3. It's ridiculous that Spider-Man should just happen to meet other super-heroes every month.
Although I'm striking the whole series from Marvel canon, I might make exceptions for individual stories that tie in with important events in other comics.
I'm not saying that the comics in this series aren't good stories. The first issue is written by Roy Thomas, one of Marvel's best writers, and it's an excellent story.
If anyone disagrees with my striking of Marvel Team-Up from the Marvel canon, that's what the comments box is for. As the years progress, there will be more series that I consider non-canon, some of them even more controversial than Marvel Team-Up. Let's get a discussion going now.
Amazing Adventures #11
Title: The Beast!
Writer: Gerry Conway
Artist: Tom Sutton
Guests: Professor X, Cyclops, Iceman, Angel, Marvel Girl
The X-Men have been in limbo since their comic was cancelled two years ago. The last issue was X-Men #66. There have been occasional guest appearances by individual team members, such as Iceman in Amazing Spider-Man #92, but now one of the X-Men will appear in his own regular series. Amazing Adventures, which previously contained stories about the Inhumans and the Black Widow, will feature the Beast.
In a flashback we see that Hank McCoy, the Beast, quit the X-Men shortly after X-Men #66. He went to work at an advanced laboratory on Long Island. Working alone, he develops a serum which will turn normal humans into mutants. He overhears a plot to steal his research. It would be too risky for him to fight the thief as a civilian, because it might reveal he's the Beast, so he swallows a vial of the serum himself, not knowing what will happen. Is he stupid? It turns him into a hairy creature, with powers similar to what he had before, but stronger.
He stops the theft, but he notices an overwhelming bloodlust. In addition, his inner monologue uses shorter words than he was accustomed to use. He wants to use an antidote to the serum within an hour, but he waits too long, and he's stuck in his hairy form.
My praises to Gerry Conway. This is the best story he's written so far. I'm also very impressed by Tom Sutton. His talents as an artist are improving.
Fantastic Four #120
Title: The horror that walks on air!
Writer: Stan Lee
Artist: John Buscema
Fantastic Four: Reed Richards, Susan Richards, Ben Grimm, Johnny Storm
Villain: Air-Walker (Gabriel)
Regulars: Agatha Harkness
Guests: General Ross
Stan Lee is back in the house, writing another issue of the comic that started the Marvel Revolution back in 1961. This issue has a simple plot, but it's so well written, as only Stan Lee can do it.
I like the magazine that the Thing is reading. That reminds me, I need to broaden my mind as well. When was the last time I bought a girly magazine? It was so long ago that I can't remember. 10 years ago? Longer?
A well-organised gang attacks the Baxter Building to steal Reed Richards' inventions. They're easily defeated, but it wrecks part of the 35th floor, angering the landlord. Reed should sell a few inventions so that he can buy the building for himself.
Agatha Harkness warns the Fantastic Four that a deadly menace has arrived on Earth. There's someone walking in the air around the world. The Fantastic Four lure him back to the roof of the Baxter Building with a display of their power. The Air-Walker is unimpressed.
The Air-Walker goes down to the street and threatens the whole world.
After the Fantastic Four fight very ineffectually against him, he blows a trumpet to symbolise the end of the world. Stan Lee has been reading the last book of the Bible for inspiration.
Amazing Spider-Man #106
Title: Squash! goes the Spider!
Writer: Stan Lee
Artist: John Romita
Villain: Professor Smythe
Regulars: J. Jonah Jameson, Joe Robertson, Randy Robertson, Gwen Stacy, Harry Osborn, Mary Jane Watson, Flash Thompson, Dr. Curt Connors
The last issue ended with Professor Smythe watching Spider-Man unmask. No trouble. Peter Parker goes to his friend Dr. Connors' laboratory and makes himself a Peter Parker mask. Then he poses in front of one of Professor Smythe's cameras and pulls off his Peter Parker mask to reveal a Spider-Man mask underneath. Obviously the professor is dumb enough to fall for that ruse.
Mary Jane Watson continues to flirt unashamedly with Peter Parker, even when her boyfriend Harry Osborn is watching. How does Peter resist temptation like that?
Okay, Gwen Stacy is a beauty as well, but in a legs versus legs contest I'd call it a tie.
Flash Thompson is complaining about feeling bad since he returned from Vietnam. Is it PTSD or something more serious? I don't know. For some reason that I no longer remember I didn't read many Spider-Man comics in the early 1970's.
Professor Smythe offers the criminal underworld the use of his city-wide observation cameras. He has also built a bigger, more powerful Spider-Slayer, which he uses to trap or kill Spider-Man, whichever is easier.
Avengers #97
Title: Godhood's End!
Writer: Roy Thomas
Artist: John Buscema
Avengers: Captain America, Thor, Iron Man, Vision, Goliath, Quicksilver, Scarlet Witch
Villain: Supreme Intelligence, Ronan, Kree, Skrulls, Annihilus
Guests: Captain Marvel, Rick Jones, Nick Fury
Rick Jones fires rays from his head that drive Annihilus away. Then he floats towards the exploding area, clutching a rock. He thinks to himself that if he could fire rays at Annihilus, he ought to be able to free himself. So he concentrates, and he passes through a portal into the Kree homeworld.
On the Skrull homeworld, Captain Marvel destroys the Omni-Wave Projector (TM) that he was forced to build for the Skrulls. He says that the Kree use it for communication, but in the hands of non-Krees it's the ultimate weapon. Can anyone explain to me the logic in that?
Ronan sends his soldiers to kill the Supreme Intelligence. Rick Jones uses his imagination to create all the comic book heroes of the 1940's to fight against them, including Captain America and Sub-Mariner. Wow! After defeating Ronan's soldiers the heroes fade away. Then Rick Jones fires a blast through the universe that paralyses all the Skrulls and Kree. The Supreme Intelligence never wanted the war, and now he's stopped it by unleashing Rick Jones' potential. He says that all humans have this potential and will reach it at the end of their evolutionary path.
Rick Jones collapses under the strain. The Supreme Intelligence brings all of the Avengers, including Captain Marvel, before him. He tells Captain Marvel that he can only save Rick Jones by combining his life force with him, i.e. he must re-enter the Negative Zone. The Supreme Intelligence sends everyone back to Earth.
Almost everyone. Goliath is missing.
Nick Fury tells the Avengers that Warren Craddock was really a Skrull. He was the fourth Skrull who escaped in Fantastic Four #2.
I couldn't remember that far back, so I checked out the story. In this panel (and others) we see that there were four Skrulls on Earth.
But on the final page only three are captured and forced to turn themselves into cows. The fourth Skrull was never mentioned. Maybe it was a mistake made by the great Stan Lee. Maybe not. Whatever the case, Roy Thomas has elegantly explained what happened to him.
This is an announcement on the letters page. It's a sort of apology that Neal Adams didn't draw the issue. He ran into deadline problems, so John Buscema drew the issue overnight. That puts into context something I read in a comic fan magazine I read in the mid 1970's, not long after this. An interviewer said to Stan Lee, "What do you think about Neal Adams? He's Marvel's best artist". To this Stan replied, "No, he's Marvel's worst artist. He never finishes his drawings on time".
Captain America and the Falcon #147
Title: And beyond the hordes of Hydra
Writer: Gary Friedrich
Artist: Sal Buscema
Villain: Kingpin, Supreme Hydra (Richard Fisk)
Regulars: Sharon Carter, Countess Valentina, Nick Fury
The Kingpin is disappointed with Hydra's efforts to defeat Captain America, so he is about to destroy the whole Hydra base. His wife Vanessa begs him not to. The reason is clear when Captain America unmasks the Supreme Hydra: it's Richard Fisk, the Kingpin's son. He previously appeared as the Schemer in Amazing Spider-Man #85.
As we hear in Countess Valentina's inner monologue, she's in love with Captain America. She won't give him up to Sharon Carter without a fight, but she's willing to bide her time. How come Captain America has two beautiful women fighting over him? What does he have that I don't?
No. You don't have to answer that.
Captain America flies to Las Vegas to the hotel where Harold Howard, America's richest man, lives.
Why the name change? Marvel names the president and other top politicians in their comics, so why not Howard Hughes?
The Kingpin has kidnapped and replaced Harold Howard. Captain America has difficulty fighting him, but the Falcon arrives and together they win. Then a massive voice booms from the sky, claiming that he's the real head of Hydra, and he'll destroy Las Vegas if Captain America and the Falcon don't surrender.
I already know who it is. It should be obvious to Captain America fans, but wait and see.
The Incredible Hulk #149
Title: The Inheritor!
Writer: Archie Goodwin
Artist: Herb Trimpe
Villain: Inheritor, High Evolutionary
Regulars: General Ross, Major Talbot, Betty Ross
What's happened to Herb Trimpe's art on the splash page? The Hulk looks awful. He looks more like the Grinch!
As you can see, Herb Trimpe's art improves later in the comic, but he's becoming too erratic.
A being falls to Earth who claims that he's the true owner of the Earth. His memories are weak, but he instinctively knows that if he's exposed to radiation he will remember more and become stronger.
The high radiation concentration at Project Greenskin in New Mexico attracts him. He smashes up part of the base, causing Bruce Banner to turn back into the Hulk.
By this time the creature, who calls himself the Inheritor, remembers that he was evolved with the assistance of the High Evolutionary. The Hulk met the High Evolutionary in Tales To Astonish #96, but the flashback to the Inheritor's creation takes place before the High Evolutionary's first appearance in Thor #134.
Do you remember this famous catch phrase by the Hulk? "The madder Hulk gets, the stronger her gets!" It was first used, in a slightly different form, in Tales To Astonish #70. It's not as catchy as "It's clobbering time", but it's a lot better than "Don't yield, back SHIELD".
The Inheritor is knocked into the radiation chamber. General Ross uses a radiation drainer on him that was built to neutralise the Hulk. The Inheritor devolves into a cockroach.
Sub-Mariner #47
Title: Doomsmasque!
Writer: Gerry Conway
Artist: Gene Colan
Villain: Doctor Doom, Modok
Regulars: Diane Arliss, Cindy Jones
Namor lost his memory after the shock of seeing his father killed. I had to go back and check the issue. No, we didn't read that he lost his memory. Gerry Conway forgot to tell us. This is a clumsy start to the story,but it improves as it goes along.
In Chicago Namor gets into a fight with a station guard. Not knowing his own strength, he throws a railway carriage at him, but an unknown onlooker saves the guard's life. A girl called Cindy Jones invites Namor into her apartment.
The unknown helper arrives. It's Doctor Doom. He appeals to him as one monarch to another to help him in a quest. Namor doesn't remember ruling Atlantis, but he believes Doctor Doom. First Namor and Cindy Jones are invited as guests to the Latverian Embassy in Washington D.C. Then they fly to New Orleans to retrieve a powerful weapon from the AIM headquarters that were destroyed in Captain America #133. Doctor Doom thinks that Modok is dead, but he's waiting for him, armed with the Cosmic Cube.
Thor #197
Title: The Well at the Edge of the World!
Writer: Gerry Conway
Artist: John Buscema
Villain: Mangog, Satrina, Kartag
Regulars: Odin, Sif, Fandral, Hogun, Volstagg, Hildegarde
Thor battles Kartag, the Keeper of the Twilight Well, and is finally defeated after a valiant fight. The three Fates appear, alternatively called the Norns, who we first saw in Journey Into Mystery #102. They say that the fight was a test, and Thor has proved himself worthy of being given the water of the well. Kartag offers to help Thor in the battle against the Mangog. They return to Asgard, but the Rainbow Bridge has been destroyed, and Asgard is nowhere in sight. After sprinkling water from the Twilight Well on his hammer, Thor is able to fly to Asgard. It's been hidden in a distant world. Mangog is holding Odin's unconscious body and threatens to kill him.
Meanwhile, Sif and Hildegarde are travelling in a steamship.
Daredevil #85
Title: Night Flight!
Writer: Gerry Conway
Artist: Gene Colan
Villain: Gladiator
Regulars: Foggy Nelson, Karen Page, Black Widow, Ivan
Matt Murdock and Natasha Romanoff are on a plane returning from Switzerland to New York. Unknown to them, the Gladiator, who we last saw in Daredevil #63, is also on the plane with a few gang members. He wants to kidnap the plane and sell it to someone in South America.
Daredevil is forced to surrender when the Gladiator reveals that he has explosives on the plane. A friendly co-passenger called Nathaniel Taggart unties Daredevil, and Taggart defuses the bombs while Daredevil fights the Gladiator.
Stan Lee liked to write about love triangles, but Gerry Conway gives us a love square... or is it a love rectangle? Matt Murdock and Natasha Romanoff arrive hand in hand in New York, after a rough landing. Karen Page and her new lover, her agent Phil Hichok, are also at the airport. As soon as they meet, Matt and Karen fall into one another's arms.
This is an enjoyable story. Gerry Conway is maturing, although he still makes some careless mistakes.
Iron Man #45
Title(s): Beneath the armor beats a heart!
The Students and the Guardsman!
Writer: Gary Friedrich
Artist: George Tuska
Villain: Mr. Kline, Guardsman
Regulars: Marianne Rodgers
This is a single story split into two parts that have been given individual titles.
Iron Man defeats the Night Phantom robot with the help of a new power booster built into his armour. Deus ex machina? He's reluctant to use it, because the power surge might cause his body to reject his new artificial heart.
Marianne Rodgers says that she knows that Tony Stark is Iron man, and she loves him. This makes Kevin O'Brian jealous, and he prepares to battle Iron Man.
Meanwhile, the board of directors votes to remove Tony Stark as the president of Stark Industries.
This vote has been engineered by Mr. Kline. This comic is slightly out of sync with other stories. Mr. Kline is an android that was destroyed by Daredevil in last month's Daredevil #84.
Tony Stark is summoned to a board meeting the next day, but he's late due to spending time with Marianne Rodgers. In his absence an anti-war demonstration starts outside the factory. Kevin O'Brian attempts to stop the demonstration as the Guardsman. He uses his suit's repulsor rays against the demonstrators and badly injures three young men. He thinks he's killed them and is full of remorse.
Tony Stark arrives as Iron Man and defeats the Guardsman. Iron Man asks for the demonstrators to remain calm, but the situation escalates.
Marvel Feature #2
Title: Nightmare on Bald Mountain!
Writer: Roy Thomas
Artist: Ross Andru
Defenders: Doctor Strange, Sub-Mariner, Hulk
Villain: Dormammu
Regulars: Wong, Clea
Special Guest Appearance: Roy Thomas, Jeanie Thomas
Doctor Strange is lured out of his physical body by an illusion of the Ancient One. When he wants to return to his body, he's blocked by a powerful spell cast by intruders. His body is carried away to be used at a ceremony in Rutland, Vermont. Dormammu, who we last saw in Doctor Strange #173, has promised to never come to Earth, and he's a man of his word, but he's willing to use a loophole. If he occupies Doctor Strange's body he's not coming to Earth in person.
Clea summons Sub-Mariner and the Hulk, who were fresh in Doctor Strange's memories. (No, I don't understand it either).
The story takes place on the night of the yearly Halloween Parade in Rutland. As always, Roy and Jeanie Thomas are in attendance. We saw them last year in Avengers #83.
Clea uses a pendulum to hypnotise the Hulk to turn back into Bruce Banner. That's a neat trick. Clea, Wong, Sub-Mariner and Bruce Banner travel to Rutland.
Bruce Banner turns back into the Hulk, just in time to battle Dormammu's followers side by side with Sub-Mariner. Doctor Strange's astral body was hiding inside Wong. He can enter his own physical body, because it's unprotected at the time of the ritual. Doctor Strange can defeat Dormammu, because he's weakened by being close to a portal to Earth.
The easiest way to sync this story would be to say that it took place immediately after Marvel Feature #1, i.e. before Sub-Mariner #44 (December 1971) and Incredible Hulk #143 (September 1971).
Non-canon comics published this month:
Marvel Team-Up #1 (Roy Thomas, Ross Andru)
Conan the Barbarian #14 (Roy Thomas, Barry Smith)
My Love #16 (Gary Friedrich, Gene Colan)
Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos #96 (Gary Friedrich, Dick Ayers)
Rawhide Kid #97 (Larry Lieber, Larry Lieber)
Creatures on the Loose #16 (Roy Thomas, Gil Kane)
Note: The plot for this month's Conan the Barbarian story was written by Michael Moorcock and features Elric. This is a multi-universe crossover: Robert E. Howard and Michael Moorcock meet in the Marvel Universe.
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