8 posts tagged “favorite comics”
I began reading Marvel Comics’ X-MEN series during the highly acclaimed Byrne/Claremont run featuring the “All-New, All-Different” team, and so had no real knowledge of the original 1960’s team. But as my love of the “Uncanny” X-men grew, my curiosity of the Lee and Kirby team grew too, til I HAD to know more about them!
This was back in the pre-internet days when access to information of most comics was almost nil. The only real way to get info on any comic you liked was to talk to the local comic shop dealer or other collectors, and in that I was lucky because I had a couple of friends who were BIG collectors of Marvel Comics, and were always ready to educate me about any Marvel History I needed to know.
So one day after telling my friend I wanted to see what the “old” X-Men looked like, he came to class and handed me a comic. It was issue #46 of a Marvel reprint title called Marvel Triple Action, and it was here I got my very first glimpse of the original X-Men: Cyclops. Marvel Girl, Beast, Angel and Iceman, and right off the bat I was blown away- WOW! How colorful, dynamic and totally COOL they looked!
The comic also introduced me to the Avengers for the first time, and I IMMEDIATELY dived into the story, relishing the interesting dialog and powerful artwork, not knowing at the time that the tale was concocted by two GREATS of the Silver Age (Writer Roy Thomas and Artists Big John Buscema), only knowing that the story “In Battle Joined!” was the most KICK-ASS story I’d read in awhile! Begun in the pages of X-Men #45, this was a story of the Avengers and the X-Men united against mutual baddie Magneto. The X-Men have been captured by Magneto, and the Angel has escaped to get aid from the Avengers- but they arrive just in time to see Cyclops knocking out former Avenger Quicksilver…
Hawkeye, Goliath, Wasp and the Black Panther have come upon X-Man Cyclops standing over the fallen figure of Quicksilver. Not sure of the situation, they tell the youth to freeze. Cyclops, however, suspects they’re only robots created by Magneto, and isn’t taking any chances. He fires at Hawkeye, and when Black Panther jumps down to subdue him, a couple of blasts from his optic visor give Cyclops enough time to get away!
It seems that when the Angel escaped Magneto’s prison back in X-Men #45, he went directly to the Avengers mansion for assistance in rescuing his fellow X-Men. Since Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch were last seem leaving with Magneto back in Avengers #49, the Avengers are happy to team up tackling the master of Magnetism.
On the Atlantic flight over to Magneto’s island, Janet discovers a miniature bugging device hidden among Angel’s wings. The Avengers now believe he’s in cahoots with Magneto, and is setting them up. While he swears he ‘s innocent, they tie him up and leave him behind when they investigate the fortress. Thus we return to our opening scene where the Avengers have just arrived to see Cyclops flee!
Magneto is watching the entire drama play out, delighted that his plans are coming to fruition. Of course, it was all part of his plans for Angel to escape and get caught with the monitor on his wings. “ Now they and the X-Men, who might otherwise been allies- will be at each other’s throats!”
Toad doesn’t like the idea of bringing in the Avengers…they should have been satisfied capturing the X-Men- their REAL enemies! Magneto electrocutes Toad for his doubt, and Toad questions why Magneto always abuses him when he alone out of ALL the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants has been loyal. “Because I don’t NEED your Loyalty!” snaps Magneto. He explains that he’s only kept Toad around because it amused him, and now Toad is just angering him. Wanda steps in and begs Magneto to leave Toad alone, and Toad says “One day soon, Magneto shall know who his true friends are.”
Meanwhile, The Avengers have become antsy sneaking around the hidden fortress, and as usual, Hawkeye and Goliath start to bicker and fight. Soon the Black Panther, who initially tries to STOP the fight, is involved, and it is up to Jan to step in and remind them that there is a task at hand.
This moment of discourse is just what Magneto has been hoping to hear, and he releases a machine that unleashes crackling electronic commands upon the unsuspecting X-Men. When the sensations vanish, we realize just what the machine has done to their minds when Cyclops states, “There was something we were going to do! Yes- We were going to find the Avengers…and DESTROY THEM!”
Any doubt that the X-Men are on the wrong side of the good guys is gone when the Avengers confront the angry teen mob and Cyclops orders: “Kill Them! Kill The Avengers!”
Beast strikes the first blow at Black Panther, and the others follow his lead. After fighting for a while, the Avengers they find they are having a hard time beating them. Then Black Panther realizes it is because they subconsciously think of the X-Men as heroes, not villains. With this change in attitude, the Avengers make quick work of the youths, much to the confusion of Magneto, who thought the X-Men would be the victors!
His confusion only increases when he turns and finds The Angel has infiltrated the control room! Soon, the Avengers smash in, as well! Goliath knows Magneto must be dying of curiosity to find out what went wrong with his plans, and elucidates. “We guessed the bug on Angel was a plant, and tied his hands loosely! Wasp whispered in his ear our plans, then pretended to quarrel to lure you into an ill-timed attack!”
Magneto knows the only option is escape, and brings down a wall of metal parts onto the Avengers, giving himself enough time to get away! He orders Toad to get the escape ship, hitting him to get a move on. “He orders me to save him - and strikes me as he does so! Thus has he EVER rewarded my unwavering Loyalty!” thinks the Toad.
With a quick move, the Toad sets the machine generators to overload- soon the entire island will be decimated by the huge explosion! He leads the Scarlet Witch and a still dazed Quicksilver to a waiting escape ship. As the ship takes off, Magneto reaches out with his magnetic powers to lift him to the jet, but finds that his powers have no effect! Toad reminds him that he once built an entire ship out of non-metals, just to prove he could do it. As Magneto tries to hold onto the ship, He says, “Toad…Stop!! I am Your Master!” to which the Toad solemnly replies, “No Magneto. The Toad calls no man master- ever again!!” He steps on Magneto’s fingers and sends him hurtling to the jagged rocks below!
Meanwhile the Avengers and X-Men (who seem to have recovered from the hypno-ray) have made it back to their ship in time to witness the Toad and his crew leaving. They quickly shove off themselves, and a few minutes later, the very horizon rocks as the entire island goes up in a fiery explosion! Soon, the ocean is littered with smoking debris and machinery from the fortress, and among the bits of twisted metal floats the remains of Magneto’s once mighty metal helmet!
What a STORY!! I loved and re-read this issue so darn much that not only did I eventually collect all the back-issues of Marvel Triple Action featuring The Avengers (as well as Triple Action successor Marvel Super Action) but immediately began subscribing to the current issues as well -and what do you know- John Byrne was the artist HERE, too When I got older, I made it a priority to get my hands on all the ORIGINAL Avengers issues, and I was simply beside myself the day I got my very own copy of AVENGERS #53, the issue where that X-Men/Avengers story originally ran and the very issue you see scanned here!
Besides the overwhelming “pride of ownership” that came with obtaining this piece of Marvel history, there are several other good reasons to own the actual copy, and not just that they got the COLORS of Beast, Angel and Goliath right(!) in the original comic-I was ECSTATIC when I read the original issue and found there were TWO EXTRA PAGES that Marvel Triple Action had cut out! HOLY TOLEDO! This was like the Modern-Day equivalent of a DVD bonus! If I thought I loved that story BEFORE…MAN! Now it was BEYOND LOVE!!! Ahahahaha!
To this day, those Avengers issues from around issue #46-60 are still some of my favorite stories ever; Roy Thomas is still one of my favorite writers, and John Buscema one of my very favorite artists… When you consider that back then I was simultaneously reading both Thomas/Buscema stories AND Byrne/Claremont stories, there’s no wonder I call this my own personal “Golden Age” of comic reading in my life!
One of the many comics I collected in the 70’s was the supernatural themed strip GHOST RIDER.
Although Ghost Rider’s origins began within the Marvel Universe I.E. battling super-villains and teaming up with the various heroes of the Marvel Universe (even joining THE CHAMPIONS for awhile), to me, the comic didn’t really “find” itself until scribe Michael Fleisher took over the writing chores in issue #36 or so.
Mike was already famous for his work on the DC title JONAH HEX, and I’ll be darned if he didn’t bring that whole experience along and apply it to the legend of Johnny Blaze, as well!
Gone was the superstar stuntman Johnny Blaze, living in the big city, hiding his secret identity from a girlfriend as he did double-work as an adventurer and part-time member of the aforementioned Champions,( a group that never seemed quite believable to me anyway- Hercules? In a group with Iceman and Angel AND a hell-spawn demon?) and in its place was a Ghost Rider that seemed much more attuned to its lonely demonic origins.
Fleisher took elements of his two more famous works, JONAH HEX and THE SPECTRE, and, along with awesome illustrator Don Perlin (who really had that Jonah Hex western style of art), painted a glorious picture of a supernatural demon wandering across the desert wastelands, helping those in need, with the hangman (or rather, the law) always just one step behind him. In effect, Johnny Blaze became a demonic hellspawn “Man with No Name”!
When I first began reading GR, the series was a bi-monthly title, (and it was EXCRUCIATING waiting the long time between issues!) but once the comic became a monthly venture in issue #40, the strip really took off with the most haunting, memorable tales including Johnny Blaze getting amnesia and one where a wizard splits Johnny and the Ghost Rider into two separate entities!
But by far, my favorite arc in the series came up on issue #45. Fleisher revisited Johnny’s days as a famous stunt cyclist and in effect drew that chapter of his life to a close, freeing him to continue on as the tortured palefaced rider of the desert plains…
We arrive on the scene as the Ghost Rider is tying up a few loose ends of his previous adventure, catching a trio of crooks who have been pawns in a bizarre plot against him by magician Azazaih in the previous issue. After giving them a punishment of cold, burning Hellfire, The Rider reverts back to Johnny Blaze, and wearily makes his way down to the local pub to have a beer.
When Johnny arrives inside, the local townsfolk are huddled around the bar’s television set, watching in amazement as Stunt Cyclist Flagg Fargo breaks a new motorcycle somersault stunt record, a feat only executed before by Johnny himself! The crowd goes wild, until Flagg starts bad-mouthing Johnny, calling him a coward for not meeting him on challenges he’s been making at every stop of his tour. The bar crowd angrily protest the accusation, saying the Johnny Blaze was the best stunt-cyclist there ever was! Then one of the patrons looks over, and immediately recognizes Johnny as THE Johnny Blaze, stuntman extraordinaire!
The crowd rallies around Johnny, begging him to come out of retirement and put an end to all of Flagg Fargo’s bravado. After a bit of indecision, Johnny agrees, to the cheers of the barroom!
As Johnny leaves the bar that night, he sees a gang of thieves robbing a nearby warehouse. He hesitates changing into Ghost Rider, and that’s all the time the crooks need to get away. Off in the distance, he sees Flagg Fargo’s trailer, but thinks nothing of it.
In the days that follow, huge coverage has been made over Johnny’s return to Stunt -cycling, and everyone is turning up to see brash newcomer Flagg Fargo take on famous champ Johnny Blaze! But right off the bat, Johnny realizes how rusty he is. He hasn’t trained for this kind of maneuvering in years, and in his very first stunt, he lands quite awkwardly.
Flagg, on the other hand, is steady and sure of himself, and completes his stunt flawlessly. At the end of the heated challenge, with Flagg locked in competition with Johnny, the score has ended up at Flagg’s 325 to Johnny’s 225. Johnny takes it hard, but his sponsors cheer him up, confident that he’ll catch up in the next day’s events.
As Johnny rides home from the arena, he comes across the gang of thieves he’d chased the other night. Not wanting to give himself over to the Ghost Rider, he decides to chase the crooks himself, but is cut off by a car attempting to block any pursuers. Johnny crashes into the car, and as it speeds off, Johnny picks himself up and exclaims, “You want to know something, Blaze old Kid? This just hasn’t been your night!”
Day Two of the Motorcycle Championship at Claremonte Arena is about to commence with newcomer Flagg Fargo versus Johnny Blaze, former champ, just out of retirement! As the two motorcyclists prepare for the night’s events, Flagg’s constant goading of Johnny is starting to get to him, and he finds he can barely control himself. When Johnny looks like he might strike Flagg, the ref steps in and warns Johnny to keep professional during the event.
The championship starts, and though it begins smoothly, Johnny makes a mistake on the final turn of the obstacle course. Flagg aces the course, and seems to set the pace of the day. For every course Johnny wins, Flagg wins two. And so it is that at the end of Day 2, the scores are Flagg at 625 to Johnny’s 400. Fargo lips off at Johnny after the game, chiding “You’re in way over your head- If I were you, I wouldn’t even bother comin’ back tomorrow!” And this time Johnny doesn’t hold back, walloping Flagg in the chops. The ref comes to break it up and dismiss them. Fargo states “ While You been ridin’ around the country feelin’ sorry for yourself, I been workin’! I been practicing!” Johnny leaves to find his backers are starting to have their doubts that Johnny can pull it off, as well.
During his meal at the diner, a tough thug comes in picking up a huge order of food. Johnny immediately recognizes the man as one of the warehouse robbers he’d seen the night before. Following the thug to a waiting van outside, he changes into Ghost Rider, and goes off in hot pursuit of the crooks. But after a wild chase, the crooks mysteriously disappear again, and this time Johnny notices that both times, Flagg Fargo’s trailer has been nearby.
He deduces that Flagg must be in on it, and smashes in on the startled Flagg Fargo relaxing inside. He manhandles Fargo, demanding he admit to both leading the warehouse crooks AND cheating in the motorcycle championship. He leaves Fargo with, “Once I have caught your slimy accomplices and made them confess, I will return to inflict the full vengeful fury of the Ghost Rider unleashed!”
Later, Johnny laments the foolishness of his acts. He has no proof that Fargo is either a crook or a cheat…and what if he’d accidentally killed him as Ghost Rider? He doesn’t want to even think about that! Winning the championship means so much to him, he even briefly entertains using his Ghost Rider powers to cheat and get ahead, but thankfully opts to race the race honestly.
Johnny knows he must get a good night’s sleep for the final challenge the following day, but after tuning up his cycle, finds he cannot sleep. He drives around aimlessly all night, till he realizes it is morning. He is about to head back, when he sees Flagg’s trailer. Standing atop a mountain view, he can see a nearby hidden road covered by brush that hide the criminals vans from street view! So, here is where they have been escaping to! He bursts in on them as Ghost Rider, and makes quick work of them. He tries to get them to confess involvement with Flagg Fargo, but they insist they have nothing to do with him.
With the capture of the warehouse robbers behind him, Johnny arrives at the Arena with a newfound determination to win. Flagg comments that Johnny looks like he’d been up all night, but Johnny brushes it off, and prepares for the duel! This time, Johnny pulls out all the stops and performs incredible stunts. But Flagg is professional, too, and in the end, just barely manages to still beat Johnny with a close call of 825 to 820.
Johnny’s backers are furious. “Get outta here, Blaze you Bum!” they yell. “Yeah, take a powder, you has-been!”. But it is Flagg Fargo himself who comes to Johnny’s defense. He remarks that all his life he’d wanted to be the best, but what he’s seen Johnny do tonight he can only dream of. So even though Flagg won, he considers Johnny the winner. He offers the trophy to Johnny, but Johnny declines it. “You won fair and square.”
Late that night, Johnny takes one last look at the scoreboard of last night’s narrow defeat against challenger Flagg Fargo, 825 to 820. “ Face it Johnny Boy", he says to himself, "You can stare at that scoreboard till the cows come home, but that still isn’t gonna change it. You lost fair and square.” He realizes he has to accept the fact that he is no longer the world champion of anything.
As he leaves the empty arena, he realizes that most of the blame for his loss came from the fact that he spent more time as Ghost Rider than practicing and getting rest. Musing on how the Rider has completely taken over his life, he decides once and for all to leave the identity of Ghost Rider behind him, and concentrate on becoming his own person. “No matter what happens, I swear here and now, that I will never become the Ghost Rider again!”
Next time we see Johnny, it is three days later, and though Johnny hasn’t changed into the Ghost Rider, he is beginning to feel the symptoms of withdrawal. He can feel the spirit of the Rider rising up in him, trying to come up to the surface. He stops at a roadside bar where he hopes a few beers will calm his nerves down and keep the Rider in him at bay.
Inside the bar, he orders a beer from the barmaid, but before he can enjoy his brew, is suddenly harassed by a trio of Motorcycle thugs who’ve instantly recognized Johnny from his televised Championship defeat. They approach Johnny and goad him into a brawl. He slugs one in the gut and cracks one across the face before the bartender comes out with a stick to chase out the ruffians. After making sure Johnny is alright, they get him another beer on the house.
Later that night (and quite a few beers later as well), Johnny feels it is enough to “keep the demon down”, and stumbles out into the streets, where he find the three motorcycle thugs waiting for him on his motorcycle. The inebriated Johnny cannot even see straight, and the thugs begin beating him with chains and crowbars. The leader called Raz is about to stomp his heel onto Johnny’s head, when a policeman arrives in time to chase the thugs off.
The policeman and his companion, a pretty girl named Amy who is being taken in for loitering, check on the bruised Johnny, and determine he’s alright. Amy offers to take Johnny in if the cop will cite her some other night . He reluctantly lets her go. Once in the car, Johnny is coming to, and tries to thank her for her kindness, but she says she recognized Blaze because her brother is a motorcycle fanatic, and the pleasure is all hers!
At her little home, she shows him the couch to crash out on, and he promises to “sleep like a lamb.” His slumber is restless, however, for his nightmares are crowded with the specter of Ghost Rider haunting his mind. He dreams of torturing the thugs with hellfire, and wakes up with the bloodlust of the Rider bubbling up. He desperately needs another drink to drown the Ghost Rider back down into his subconscious. Amy thinks she is looking at a classic alcoholic when he demands a drink, but relents, and lets him have one, if only to relax him. He has managed, just barely, to keep the demon down again.
The next day is a happy one for the couple. Johnny apologizes to Amy for his actions the night before, as they make their way to the field, where they plan on having a relaxing picnic. After a meal together, Johnny and Amy are cozying up to each other, when Johnny hears the dreaded voice of the motorcycle thugs. They’ve come back to harass Johnny, but this time, all he wants is for them to leave.
They rummage through his motorcycle pack, and pull out his Championship Outfit. One of them puts it on. Then they say they are taking Johnny’s cycle, and want his leather jacket, too. Johnny is angry, but Amy tells him to just do it so they will leave. Johnny reluctantly backs down, and taking off his jacket and handing it to them, growls, “Here, you rotten…Here it is!”
The three thugs ride off and Johnny is furious, but Amy is proud of him for not resorting to violence. She points out that the important thing is that they have each other. But no sooner have the words left her lips, when the thugs return.. and accost Amy! The thugs push themselves onto the helpless girl, and this is the final straw! Johnny has had enough, and as four days of demonic repression burst forth in one huge explosion of rage, Johnny become the Ghost Rider again, insane with anger!!!
This is the first time we have seen the Ghost Rider without his leather jacket on, and for the first time, we see what the Rider’s “muscles” are composed of, swirling, flaming muscular sinews roar around the bones of the enraged Ghost Rider ! With a demonic gesture, he conjures up his chopper in a billow of hellfire, and speeds on to catch his fleeing prey. He immediately has them in his grasp where they are immediately engulfed in icy hellfire, the cold flame searing through them and obliterating their very souls!
Once the horrific deed is done, the fire and brimstone are suddenly sucked back into a weakened form of Johnny, where a frightened Amy rushes to his side. She fully understands his meaning of “Keeping the Demon down” now. “That’s what you meant, isn’t it?” “ That…That awful Thing!” Johnny admits that it is. As Johnny gets onto his cycle, Amy begs him to stay with her. “We can beat this thing if we stay together…I know we can!”, but Johnny sadly drives off, never looking back, thinking, “The Demon is inside me, Amy.” “It’s inside to stay.”
Absolutely one of the very best Fantastic Four stroies in the mighty FF canon!
The story opens with a scene Fantastic Four fans have long been familiar with: Four astronauts sneak onto the government base to pilot an unauthorized test flight to the moon. They are Reed Richards, Sue Storm, Ben Grimm and Johnny Storm, and they are about to make the jump into outer space that will become one of the most significant events in their lives as well as the world around them!
The secret flight has been planned in haste due to expected budget cutting, and as they hurtle upwards into outer space, they fear the shielding against the cosmic rays will not be enough to protect them. As they enter the cosmic storm, their worst fears are realized as the rays penetrate through the ship’s siding, and a bizarre transformation takes place within the four passengers aboard the ship as the rocket crashes back down to earth.
But here is where the familiar story diverges into a new and different story from the one we know…unlike the famed test flight when they crash land and are reborn as the Fantastic Four, in THIS scenario, the ship smashes down and explodes in a gulf of flame! Suddenly we see young Johnny Storm screaming up out of bed- the vision we have just seen has been no more than a bad nightmare of his!
But as Johnny crawls out of bed and gets ready for his day, we see at once that something is different- Johnny doesn’t appear to be the superhero Human Torch of the Fantastic Four, instead, he seems like a regular teenage boy living in a small town on his way to work at Sal’s Garage. He waves to the pretty girls on the street, and makes a visit to his favorite couple… Reed and Sue, who also appear to be no more than a normal married husband and wife in a quiet neighborhood!
He drives past Ben and Alicia, another happily married couple outside their café, and we are treated to another surprise- Ben is Human, and Alicia can see! Cleary we are dealing with an alternate reality of the Fantastic Four…or are we? As Johnny drives off, we see a man across the street observing the exchange of pleasantries with obvious delight. He is Phillip Masters, the father of Alicia, and as he tells himself, “Perfect! It’s All Going Exactly as I Want It!”, we realize that whatever is transpiring here is some kind of conspiracy, and it is happening to the REAL Fantastic Four.
That night, Sue is haunted again by the mysterious dream, and this time, after a heated argument, she sees Ben turning into a monstrous thing, she sees him stretching a pliable Reed, and finally setting Johnny on Fire! It is clear the dreams are becoming worse, and when Johnny and Reed are discussing it the next day at Ben’s café, he sheepishly admits that HE’S been having the same kind of dreams, too! Reed tries to wrap his mind around the subject, but then Phillip Masters and Alicia arrive, and they turn the conversation to more pleasant things.
After a long and particularly frustrating day at the university dealing with Mr. Vaughn, Reed sits alone in the dark and ponders the coincidence of all three of them having such similar dreams. Johnny on fire. Ben as a monster. Reed as a rubber man. And the space ship. It always comes back to the ship…
Reed drifts off to a troubled sleep. He dreams… and all the pieces of the puzzle fall into place: The Space Flight. The Cosmic Rays. The Crash. The birth of the celebrated Fantastic Four, the Baxter Building, and then, something sinister…the Puppet Master hypnotizing them…and leading them down to a secret lab, with one other waiting in darkness... He almost has the complete story, but just as he reaches for the answer, Reed falls out of his chair, crashing awake!
The fall has left him clear-minded and positive of one surety: THE DREAM IS THE TRUTH. And as he knows that, he knows that whoever has imprisoned them in this fairytale town must also be a dangerous villain who must be stopped. But he must accomplish his first great task: Convince the other team-mates that their life has been a lie!
Reed arrives home at an ungodly late hour, his arm covered in matted blood. He has sliced his arm with a scalpel to prove to himself that the bodies they inhabit are not real bodies, but in fact some sort of synth-clone puppets that their minds are inhabiting. The others, of course, do no believe a word of it, and think Reed is delusional from the loss of blood. “You Don’t Believe me”. states Reed, “But you will. Our very lives may depend upon it. I WILL MAKE YOU BELIEVE ME!”
Phillip Masters is sweeping the front of his toy store when he is accosted by the angry members of the team. Reed has been successful in convincing them the truth, and their real memories have come crashing back. Seeing the ruse is over, the former Puppet Master admits that he had a hand in the deception, but only because he wanted to see his daughter Alicia happy. But Masters didn’t have the technological knowledge to implement this kind of project, and brought in someone who did. “Who?” asks Reed, and just then a voice booms from above, “SURELY, REED RICHARDS, THAT IS NOT DIFFICULT TO DEDUCE?” Their captor all along has been DOCTOR DOOM!
With the illusion lifted, Doctor Doom grandly reveals the complete picture: They are indeed trapped in synth-cloned puppets of their real selves, and have been sentenced to live out their lives in the tiny constructed town of Liddleville! Enjoying the bizarre prison he has made for them, he’d even occasionally “entered” the town by “jumping” into a robot body to harass Reed Richards…Yes, Doom was Mr. Vaughn! So now what? “What do you intend to do?” asks Reed, and Doom laughs. He doesn’t plan on doing anything to them- he has reduced them to his play-things, and will leave them there in the Liddleville prison, trapped in their puppet bodies, while he leaves to reclaim the throne of Latveria!
Reed knows there is a small spark buried within each of their little cloned bodies that is in all of them that made them become the Fantastic Four. He must find a way to get their powers back, escape this prison and stop Doctor Doom- and he remembers something that just might do it… Earlier, the University had received a special piece of machinery, a PARTICLE ACCELORATOR, a device that can recreate any type of radiation, whether it be radiation from the sun, or…cosmic rays! After examining the equipment, Reed determines that is a real, functioning device, and all that is left is for the group to make the decision to change back to the Fantastic Four.
One by one, the members each step up to the accelerator, and get dosed with the equivalent of the space flight’s cosmic rays, reverting them back to the Fantastic Four, albeit a much smaller version! Using their powers, they break free of the Liddleville town prison, and soar out into Doom’s laboratory, where they have been secured away. They get to the control console , but find Doom has removed the Power Module that will start the controls and free them.
They lure Doom back to the lab and get him to “jump start” the module with an energy blast, and railroad him into setting off the controls, which frees the group at last from the puppet bodies they’ve been imprisoned! The group leaps up and quickly prepares for a battle with Doctor Doom, but find that the energy shock has left him strangely immobile. Not quite dead, he seems to be in a type of coma…
The reason we find, is that Doom has jumped back to his little robot body, and with only a twist of a ring, is ready to jump back when the Fantastic Four are off their guard! He is about to commence departure, when the ring is smashed by a thrown rock.
It is Phillip Masters, and he has re-programmed the entire town to his will. All he wanted was for his daughter to be happy, and Doom has ruined it for them. He orders the townspeople to destroy Doom, who flees for his life, knowing that if he should “die” in robot form , his mind will perish as well. He knows that in the robot body, he can run forever…but so can they!
A Terrific story by John Byrne, celebrating the story of the Fantastic Four and their origin.
Our story opens on a familiar scene in Batman lore. Young Bruce Wayne is walking home from the movies with his parents, Dr. Thomas and Martha Wayne, when suddenly an armed robber comes out of the shadows. Brandishing a gun at Thomas, he demands Martha’s purse. When he grabs her arm and Thomas makes a move to stop him, the robber turns around and guns him down and his wife begins screaming. Panicking, the robber turns on her and guns her down, too, fleeing the scene of the crime leaving a young Bruce Wayne crumpled to his knees realizing his beloved parents are dead and will never hold him or love him again. He begins wailing…and an adult Bruce Wayne wakes up screaming from the nightmare 20 years later!
Bruce is surprised that he’s had such a nightmare…he hasn’t thought about his parents’ murder since he put Joe Chill away years ago. Restless after the unsettling ordeal, He decides to become Batman to unwind, and swings out into the Gotham night, patrolling the city for its nocturnal predators. He spies a couple of would-be muggers hijacking an old woman, and intervenes. As he chases the thieves down an alley, he is surprised to find himself in Finger Alley, the crime scene where his parents were killed 20 years ago. Suddenly Robin shows up to help Batman, and then both of them realize Robin is supposed to be at college, in another state! How did he come to be here?
“You are here…Because you MUST be here,” explains a ghostly voice. They turn, and come face to face with the Phantom Stranger, the mysterious mystical being who wanders between worlds.
When Batman asks the apparition what’s wrong, the Stranger replies ‘The wrong has yet to be done, and given your help, may NEVER be done! He explains.
There are worlds beyond worlds. Forty years ago on one such planet, another Bruce Wayne saw his parents murdered, and became Batman, Then twenty years ago, on THIS planet, Bruce watched HIS parents die, and, like his predecessor, became Batman as well. Now on still another planet, the cycle is about to repeat itself. Thomas and Martha Wayne will die unless he intervenes!
The Batman is confused, wondering why the Phantom Stranger would offer such an unusual choice. The Stranger replies that have for all the good Batman has done, he’s always felt like he failed the ones he loved most. “This is your second chance, Bruce Wayne, and I offer it as a friend and as a comrade.”
Both Robin and Batman take him up on the offer. The fog swirls in around them, and when the fog clears, they find themselves in a slightly distorted vision- it is Gotham City (or at least, a version of it) twenty years ago! They have come right upon a gang of boat smugglers, and quickly jump in and subdue the crooks. When the police arrive, who should show up, but a young Lieutenant Gordon! Not familiar with the Dark Knight, he wants them arrested for vigilantism, but the duo speed away!
They go to the hall of records to pick up the trail of Lew Moxon, the man who will hire Joe Chill to murder the Waynes. While Batman goes through the files, Robin reads up on the happenings of this planet. He is shocked to find that on THIS planet there are no costumed heroes. In this planet, there will not even be a Superman! He reasons that if they intervene, they might well be cheating this world of its only hero, but Batman doesn’t want to hear about it.
Later, under the cover of trees, Batman and Robin watch over the Wayne family. Young Bruce is having a temper tantrum and throwing his toys around, but his parents try to be patient with him. Batman is solemn, watching his beloved parents, but Robin notes, “THIS Bruce Wayne is a spoiled Brat!” He wonders, “If we stop the murder, will Bruce grow up to become the bored playboy Bruce only pretends to be?”
Later, the Dynamic Duo catch up to Lew Moxon and demand to know where his killer Joe Chill is. They rough up Moxon and warn his that he’ll be in trouble if any harm comes to the Waynes. As they leave however, their threat has the opposite effect, as Moxon decides he’d better hire a killer RIGHT AWAY, since so many seem to suspect his plans!
With only five days to go before the night of the murder, Batman goes on a hunt to find Joe Chill’s whereabouts himself, sneaking into the Interstate Records at Police Headquarters. Using the Police computers, Batman finds where Joe Chill is residing, and is about to rush out, when he is stopped at gunpoint by Lieutenant Gordon! “Don’t move, please… I assure you, I’m a good shot.”
Meanwhile Robin has been staying at the Wayne House to keep an eye on the family. He is horrified to see Bruce and his Parents getting ready to go out to see a movie, for he knows they were murdered coming OUT of a movie theater. “Where are you, Batman?”
Batman is desperate to get out and nab Joe Chill and doesn’t have the time to explain the situation to Gordon, even if he could! “Lieutenant,” Batman begins, “In another time, another place…we’re friends. If you can feel even a hint of that, please, trust me…let me go!” Gordon watches the face of the brooding vigilante, and then, without knowing why, lowers the gun and decides to take the chance that the man is telling the truth.
Batman rushes out, and in a few minutes, is shocked to find the slumped figure of Joe Chill. He’s been murdered, and as Batman realizes they’ve sent someone ELSE to kill the Waynes, he remembers that there have been five leap years in the last 20 years, five days that the calendar doesn’t record! For all intents and purposes, this day IS the night of the 26th, the night his parents are destined to be murdered!
As Robin anxiously follows the Waynes as the leave the Movie Theater, a hoodlum comes out of the shadows! It is the hold-up man, and the murders of the Waynes is about to take place! Robin is about to step in, when suddenly, Batman comes swooping down on the gunman, diverting the killing shot and yelling ‘NO! Not this Time!” He chases the frightened criminal down the alley, and as he knocks the man unconscious, adds, “This time, I didn’t fail them.”
At that instant, the mysterious fog rolls in again. It is the Phantom Stranger, come to take Batman and Robin home again. “You are now as much a stranger here as I.” Robin wonders if they will ever know the fate of young Bruce Wayne. “Perhaps.” says the Phantom Stranger. “But for now, all you need to know is that you saved two lives, and altered forever a third.” “Amen to that” says Batman, then the fog dissipates, and they are gone!
Thomas and Martha has seen a change in young Bruce Wayne since the night of the robbery. He has become more studious and thoughtful. “Maybe we should get mugged more often,” they joke. But Bruce Wayne will never forget that night when he and his parents were accosted and the giant batlike creature saved their lives. He realized then that death is something that can, at least temporarily, be avoided. We see the young boy studying Detective work, and doing exercises to build up his muscles.
“There will come a day when Bruce Wayne will make a decision. a direction for his life. And when he does. it will not be a decision born of grief, guilt or vengeance, but one of awe…and gratitude.”
And as we see young Bruce walking back to the house, the shadow he is casting is none other that the foretelling image of…The Batman!
A friend of mine turned me on to the whole Iron Man thing right as it was in the middle of what would become the famous “Demon In A Bottle” saga, dealing with Tony Stark’s alcoholism, and in our opinion, there has never been a more stellar run on the strip.
The Iron Man creative “Dream Team” behind this run started very precisely at Iron Man issue #114. This introduced John Romita, Jr. into the fold, and together with inker Bob Layton and the awesome writing of David Michelinie, they created some of my very favorite comic stories, not just in Iron Man, but in Marvel Comics, period! Although John Romita Jr. officially left the strip after #128, he would continue to appear sporadically in Iron Man for a good many stories after that. One of the tales that he came back for was the spectacular two-parter created to celebrate Iron Man hitting the landmark #150th issue, in a story called KNIGHTMARE!
Our story begins in Iron Man Issue #149. Stark International has just filled a huge and very profitable technological order for a distant foreign country. Unfortunately for them, they find out just a little bit late that the cargo is heading for LATVERIA, and the components have been ordered by none other than DOCTOR DOOM!
Iron Man is sent to retrieve the order and recompensate Latveria, stating that they cannot sell their goods to someone who might use it for World Threatening purposes.He manages to stop the ship enroute to make its delivery.
Predictably, Doctor Doom isn't too happy about having to return the goods, and sends mechanical robots to snatch back the cargo that he feels are already his. Knowing the property is just too dangerous to leave in Doom's hands, Tony Stark reluctantly makes a trip over to Latveria, where he must confront Doom and retrieve the cargo once more.
Meanwhile, Doctor Doom’s long-suffering assistant Hauptmann lurks in the shadows, eyeing the battle. He has been formulating a plan to get revenge on Doom for killing his brother years ago, and the opportunity to execute his plan seems to be coming to light- As Doom and Iron Man grapple each other, they unwittingly find themselves atop Doom’s time machine.
Before they know it, Hauptmann has thrown the switch and sent them spiralling into the past! As soon as the deed is done, Hauptmann smashes the Time Machine to bits – knowing that without the device, Doom and Iron Man are trapped in the past –FOREVER! This was the cliffhanger that led to issue #150!
Can you imagine the month that I had to wait to get the next issue?! I was in agony!
As the Time Machine hurtles the duelling armored men into the past, they merely perceive it as a huge explosion, and believe they have been expelled into Doom’s courtyard. Only after looking around does Iron Man stop the fight to realize they’ve come a lot farther that that- They are in CAMELOT!
Doctor Doom quickly deduces what has happened. His assistant has sent them into the past. It had been set to come to Camelot for Doom had planned on making the journey to consult with the great sorceress Morgana Le Fey. Thanks to the turn of events, he has arrived- only in a much more permanent state than he’d planned!
They haven’t been there for very long before they are confronted by Guards who attempt to take them prisoners and are taken to be judged by King Arthur.
Iron Man is quick to make peace with the king and demonstrates some of his armor’s abilities. Doom is not so forthcoming, and states that in his homeland HE is a king, and won’t lower himself to perform “parlour tricks”. They are kept as permanent guests for the time being.
I love this scene- Tony’s in a melancholy mood. He’s such a product of the technology age, of circuits and machines, he couldn’t be more hopelessly out of place than here in the past.
Doom is able to wring a girl’s mind for information on Morgana Le Fey’s whereabouts. Once the knowledge is obtained, he immediately leaves the castle, locates Morgana’s Castle and offers his services to the Dark Sorceress. (And GEEZ, LOOK AT HER…DAMN, IMHO No One has EVER portrayed her so sultry and beautiful- JUST GORGEOUS!)
Doom explains to the Sorceress how he has been visiting the great magicians through time using his timecube machine with one purpose: to free his mother from the prisons of hell. Morgana Le Fey listens and strikes a bargain with Doom- she will help him if he will lead her undead soldiers in the final battle with King Arthur. Doom readily agrees.
Meanwhile, back at the battlefield, once the undead soldiers become inanimate again, he knows that Le Fey has gone, and his chance of rescuing his tormented mother has once again slipped from his grasp! In a rage, he speeds over to the castle, and smashes in on a startled Iron Man.
The battle over, even Doom must concede that there is no reason for him to exist here anymore. He decides the time is right for his return to his own time. And here’s where the story just blew me away, as Doctor Doom reveals his plan to Iron Man:
It is just possible that they CAN return to the present, but only with their COMBINED GENIUSES and CANNIBALIZING BOTH OF THEIR ARMORED SUITS and using the intricate circuitry to create a device that might warp time around them and return them to the present day! Yes, they realize the only way they will get back home is to work TOGETHER!
The two minds work together all through the night, and by dawn have come up with an elaborate construction wired into both armored suits for power. They make a truce that if the device should happen to work, they will allow each other to go their own way.
When the final connection is made, the fabric of time rips around them, and the two find themselves back in the present time, the collaborative construct reduce to molten slag around their fried mechanical parts. Doom leaves with a remark: “We WILL Meet Again”, to which a weary Iron Man simply states, ”I’ll Be Waiting.”
Then the two turn around and go their separate ways.
At the time I read this story, I had already fallen in love with the character of Doctor Doom, having recently read the Fantastic Four story “The Coming Of Overmind”, where Doom finds himself allied with his arch enemies to overthrow an Alien Attack, and this new dimension to his persona just about sealed the deal for me. I mean, having Doom and Iron Man dismantle themselves together to build a time device was just ingenious!
The intricate artwork only made it more impressive, and a special point MUST be made here, about the incredible inking talent of Bob Layton. In my opinion, there is NO ONE out there who does “metal” like him. Everything he embellishes REALLY looks hard as steel, I remember him illustrating a cover of Captain America, and even then, Cap’s Sheild looked so tough!
After this there was only more to come, tales such WHAT IF DOCTOR DOOM WAS A HERO? and an excellent Red Skull battle in SUPER-VILLAIN TEAM UP, not to mention the incredible John Byrne Fantastic Four issues that were still to come!
And as a bonus side note, years later, when Iron Man hit its landmark 250th Issue,they celebrated by creating a SEQUEL to “Knightmare”, in a tale called “Recurring Knighmare”, this time sending Iron Man and Dr. Doom into the FUTURE!
I’ve always felt very strongly that The Amazing Spider-Man has been the most linear of all the Silver-Age Marvel titles in that there is no other comic out there that felt so much like ONE CONTINUOUS STORY. From his debut in Amazing Fantasy #15 to Amazing Spider-Man #1 and beyond, each issue felt like it was written as a DIRECT continuation and every issue of Amazing Spider-Man that came out seemed to be adding to the first chapter introduced in Amazing Fantasy #15. When we first meet Peter Parker, he is a thin, shy wallflower type, but as each issue moved along, we saw him get more and more confidence. We saw him lose the glasses. We saw him “fill out” into his muscles. He graduated from High School and went to College. He moved into his own place- got girlfriends, got roommates! We are with Peter Parker every step that he’s taken!
In fact, out of all Marvel Comics Titles, The AMAZING SPIDER-MAN is the one that most closely relates to its own history. People Pete has met, things he's discovered and lessons he's learned are always reflected back upon, and they are the primary reason for Peter Parker’s beliefs and motivations.
It's hard to actually pin down exactly where my favorite storyline arc begins. Strictly speaking, the story is focused in issues #196-200, but actually begins around issue #194-195, which in turn sort of begins around #191-193. There are even elements in issues #189 and 190 that are relevant.
Whenever I feel like reading this storyline, I myself always start from issue #191, because this is really where events start happening until they grow and snowball into the epic 200th issue. However, for this article, I'll stick to only scenes that are relevant to the 200th issue.
The Amazing Spider-Man #193
While May Parker is residing at the Nursing Home, they are renting out the house to make ends meet. But there is more to the current tenant than meets the eye, and when we first meet him, he is obviously up to no good. He is tearing up the Parker house looking for…something, and when he cannot find it, he decides to get the information from Aunt May herself.
He crashes in on the Nursing home and introduces himself to the caregiver: He is the BURGLAR WHO KILLED UNCLE BEN!
The Amazing Spider-Man 194-195
The unscrupulous criminal we know only as “That Burglar” wants to interrogate Aunt May about a mysterious "package", but, hoping to deter the thief, Dr. Ludwig points out that her nephew comes every day to visit her, and so he should just leave her alone.
The Burglar realizes this is true, and devises a cruel way to stop Peter from ever having to come to the Home again.
After a long, horrendous day, Peter slinks home, depressed over his apparent failure to rescue the villainess Black Cat from her death. But nothing can prepare him for the telegram that waits for him when he gets home…
The ending that sent chills down my spine! Of course, part of me was immediately saying “Ahh, there’s NO WAY she’s really dead...is there…?” but I couldn’t deny the impact that cliffhanger had for me...
The Amazing Spider-Man #196
Peter immediately makes his way to the nursing home, where he is greeted with the sight of Aunt May in a open casket. Peter is shell-shocked.
Peter’s grief really hits home. Even now, after knowing the entire story, this scene still tears me apart! But there are more sinister things going on that Pete realizes…Upon returning to their old home, Peter finds that the last tenant has TORN UP the entire house! With his mind wildly thinking, he suddenly realizes something about the Nursing Home caretaker that he'd forgotten! He races back to confront the Caretaker, but is nabbed- by none other than...The Kingpin!
The Amazing Spider-Man #197-198
The Kingpin’s wife Vanessa (introduced way back in 174) has given him an ultimatum- leave crime behind him or lose HER! The Kingpin has been given 24 hours to tidy up his criminal affairs, and of course he uses this time to eliminate the one thorn in his side, Spider-Man!
They begin a terrific battle together-each one taking his turn attacking each other as they hurl threats (and physical objects) at each other. I remember really digging the pacing of this fight, and there’s even this great page where there’s no dialog at ALL except for the sound effects of their punches! The editors noted “Sometimes we know when to keep our mouths shut!”
The Kingpin is about to deliver the killing blow to Spidey just as midnight strikes- suddenly Vanessa reappears, ready to have The Kingpin do good on his promise to leave crime. He knows it would take just one second to kill Spider-Man and have his record clean, but his love and respect of Vanessa is far greater than his criminal career.
Spidey has barely recovered from the Kingpin's assault, when another villain from his past re-emerges- the master of illusions, MYSTERIO! It seems the caretaker of the Nursing home has been the old foe eking out a life bilking old folks out of their estates. After hearing of the supposed treasure the Burglar has been trying to get, Mysterio's curiousity piqued him enough to come out of retirement, but after several struggles, Mysterio has had enough, and opts to quit the battle while he is still ahead. He draws out a tranquilizer gun and shoots Spider- Man in the chest.
As Mysterio leaves, he laughs at Peter's attempts to detain him.Quickly batting away his hands, Mysterio declares:“Don’t you realize the basic truth? Spider-Man is DEAD!”
As Spider-Man falls to the ground,the blurb announces in big letters:
NEXT ISSUE: SPIDER-MAN #200!
What A cliffhanger! I was BESIDE myself with anticipation for the next issue!
The Amazing Spider-Man #200
“ The Spider and The Burglar”
Well, this is it! The story that I consider the final chapter that began all the way in Amazing Fantasy #15. This story is that finally brings closure to all the trails and tribulations of Peter Parker that IS “The Amazing Spider-Man”.
The story begins with Peter realizing that the drug-dart Mysterio used to kill him has instead taken away his Spider-powers. But he cannot stop to be concerned about that because he has a lot of work to do- he has to find out who his last tenant was, and why the house was torn up. Using detective work, he is shocked to find the last tenant was the last person he thought he would hear about again- the burglar who killed his Uncle Ben!
Peter arrives home with new knowledge of the person who has re-entered his life. And who should be WAITING at home for him? The BURGLAR himself! Hoping to terrorize Peter, he confronts him face to face, but is unprepared for the explosive assault by him. Years of hatred has been building up inside of Peter and without a thought, he lets the burglar have it! But his anger blinds him, and without his Spider-strength, the crook knocks Pete out with the butt of his gun.
The Burglar tries to get Peter to give him the information he had previously been trying to get out of Aunt May, but after repeatedly beating Peter, realizes he won’t get anything out of him.
He then realizes he has SOMETHING that might persuade him to talk.
He leaves to get it, and in the interim, Peter finally breaks out of his prison. Peter has had enough-Spider-Man is out for the Burglar's BLOOD!
While Spider-man is off trying to find the burglar, He has returned with the “persuasion” he needed to get Pete to talk-and it is none other than AUNT MAY, frightened but very much ALIVE! I have to say that when I read this, it blew me away! Aunt May alive was the last thing I expected to see, even with my earlier doubts about her “death”!
But if the burglar is surprised that Peter has escaped, he doesn't have time to think about it as his worst nightmare appears on the scene- SPIDER-MAN has arrived-just like he did way back in AMAZING FANTASY #15!
The Burglar is flabbergasted! The spectre of Spider-Man has haunted him his whole life - He cannot see why Spider-Man would hound him forever for the death of one old man.
Then Peter drops the bomb on the criminal: Why does Spider- Man care so much about Peter's old Uncle's murder?
BECAUSE PETER PARKER IS SPIDER-MAN!!!
The points of this scene cannot be underplayed- here we have the burglar realizing that the unimportant old man he killed years ago is the Uncle of his biggest nightmare. And of course, we as readers know that if not for this act, Spider-Man might never have become the amazing hero he is. This confrontation is one of the most significant moments in the Spider-Man 200 issue run!
The burglar’s shock turns to panic and wide eyed fear- he believes Spider Man will kill him for what he has done, because it’s what HE would have done. But of course, Spider-Man won’t sink to the burglar’s level- because Peter IS a true Hero. But the burglar cannot see this, and as insane panic overtakes him, his heart gives out, and he dies.
Epilogue:
Aunt May finally remembers what the burglar must have been looking for- it was an old box hidden between some floorboards. But whatever had been stashed in the box had long ago been eaten away-by silverfish!
The two have a good laugh, and Peter says “So all that heartache was for nothing!” But Aunt may points out that there was purpose in it, because it made them stronger. And Pete realizes she is right.
The story ends with Peter swinging about town with a new resolution- during the time when He didn’t have his powers, he realized how much he needed them. And he know how much good he can do with them. He resolves that never again will he ever take them for granted, and makes a promise to be grateful every day for the gift that has been given to him.
He has made peace with Uncle Ben’s death, his identity as Spider-Man, and himself.
'Nuff Said!
Roger Stern and John Byrne pay respect to the Legacy of Marvel Comics' Golden Age featuring Captain America and the Invaders in this awesome story that appeared in the pages of Captain America 253 and 254.
His accusations fall upon deaf ears, however, because he is old and unwell, and everyone believes him to be getting senile. But Lord Crichton feels in his heart that he is correct, and calls upon the only person whom he knows will believe him: Captain America.
I love this scene where Captain America reunites with his former team mate Spitfire, Miss Jacqueline Crichton. During the war, she was the teenage girl who had a crush on Cap, but to her sad realization, she sees that because of his years in suspended animation, he has remained young, while she has aged many years.
I love this passage because the story reflects so much about time, how it steals strength and energy from people who were larger than life in their youth. More than this, though is the story’s underlying message of respect and friendship. It’s never clearer that when Cap has a chance to talk to Lord Crichton alone..…
Unlike everyone else in the house, Captain America is the only one who still gives Lord Crichton the respect and dignity the former leader of The Invaders deserves. Both men are true heroes here.
Lord Crichton tells Cap that his half brother is back from he dead and will be coming to take his life. He states that his brother will continue to return from the grave until he is killed the only way to properly kill a vampire: beheading.
All suspicions are laid to rest that night, however, when Baron Blood descends upon Falsworth Manor to take out meddling Captain America.
But The Vampire is in for a surprise, when he finds Captain America wide awake and waiting! Ouch! That’s gotta hurt!
The Vampire flees as morning breaks, and thus the manhunt begins to locate the body of Baron Blood before he can strike again. All paths come up dry, however, and the group is forced to change their tactics. They must bait Baron Blood and draw him to THEM!
They use the bait they know Baron Blood cannot resist: Having old Lord Crichton dress up again as his old foe Union Jack will be too much for the vampire to take.
When the Baron arrives as expected at sunset, however, it is Lord Crichton’s nephew’s friend who is waiting in the suit. Together with Captain America the two battle Baron Blood to a standstill! Time is running short for them though, because as the sun goes down, the Baron gets stronger. Quick action MUST be taken while they have the vampire against the ropes, and Cap remembers the advice Lord Crichton gave him a few days ago:
The story ends with the group destroying all the remains of Baron Blood. After the ceremony, they find that Lord Crichton has also passed on. They are satisfied though, knowing that Lord Crichton died with the knowledge that his evil half brother’s reign was over.
A terrific story full of history and respect for the legacy of the Golden Age of Marvel Comics.
I am part of the John Byrne / Chris Claremont era of the Uncanny X-Men, and so by 1980, I was collecting a whole smorgasboard of titles in the Marvel and DC canon. One of the titles I collected was THOR, and this issue really blew me away as a kid.
Really Nice story written by Mark Gruenwald and Ralph Maccchio, with art by Keith Pollard (whatever happened to this guy? His Fantastic Four stuff was terrific!) and Chic Stone.
Former Herald to Galactus Gabriel the Air-Walker awakens in a farm out in the country, where the Machinesmith’s secret lab has once been hidden. Bursting out of the Barn, He is approached by a small boy named Kevin who thinks Gabriel is the coolest thing since Darth Vader. We find out Kevin has recently lost his father, and the lonely boy immediately identifies with Gabriel. The boy wants to tag along, and Gabriel, needing someone to help him along the way to find out what has happened since he last walked, allows him to.
They first go to the Fantastic Four, where Gabriel finds that Galactus has been defeated and is gone. Gabriel creates a blizzard that covers the city which alerts Thor and prompts him to take action. Thor manages to get the boy away from Gabriel, and is a little confused that the boy doesn’t seem to realize the danger Gabriel is- Everyone believes the boy to be Gabriel’s hostage, not knowing he is there on his own free will!
The two powerhouses battle, until Gabriel gets the upper hand and knocks Thor out cold.
Gabriel is ready to destroy Thor, But Kevin pleads for Gabriel not to kill him. “Only Bad Aliens kill people!” he reasons. A soft spot is touched in Gabriel, and he relents. “Very Well, Kevin…He shall Live”. He levitates Kevin back up to him and the two go off to further explore the city.
Meanwhile, Thor has regained consciousness, and is determined once and for all to stop Gabriel. Now realizing Gabriel is only a robot, he doesn’t hold back and slams his hammer right through the Herald’s chest, destroying him at once. The Robot and the child both plummet to earth, where Thor catches Kevin. He is quite surprised when the boy runs to the fallen Gabriel and bursts into tears. His newfound friend has been taken from him, just like his father. Thor realizes now that Gabriel had no intent to harm the boy, and quietly bows out.
I cannot tell you how much this story affected me. In fact, for a while there, Thor stories were quite humanitarian in nature. Issue #303 deals with a priest who is losing his faith, and #304 shows Thor saving an elderly woman from being struck by a car, only to see her get struck down later in a battle with The Wrecker and his Wrecking Crew.
All of these stories to this day remain close to my heart!
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