Partners In Crime

In many of those old silver- and bronze-age stories that involved Asgard and/or Thor, the Enchantress and the Executioner always seemed to be joined at the hip--the Enchantress being the brains, and her brutish companion the Executioner the brawn, the two drawn together in some mutual scheme where they could attain power and/or revenge. And it looks like they were a team from Day One:

It's pretty easy to figure out why the Executioner came running whenever the Enchantress beckoned, other than the fact that it meant a devilish scheme was at hand. But what set in motion their enmity toward Thor? What set them on the path to mutual villainy?

To find the answer, we'll need to execute yet another

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Marvel Trivia Question

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How did these two Asgardians become partners in crime?

Well, when it comes to Thor being a target, we have only to look in the direction of one particular mortal who caused him a great deal of trouble in those early days just by pining away for Thor's mortal alter-ego, Dr. Donald Blake:

Whoa--hold your horses, Jane! You're still calling this man "Doctor," and you're expecting a marriage proposal from him?? This is 1964, not the turn of the century! Couples have learned to take awhile to get to know each other. In your case, you might actually consider becoming a couple first--and remember, you'll need to be able to pronounce his first name before you walk down the aisle!

Anyway, for a humble nurse, Jane has become well-known in villain circles and becomes imperiled as a matter of course, so Thor usually ends up defending or rescuing her at some point. And speaking of villains, once again we don't have to look very far to learn who would be responsible for siccing the Enchantress on the God of Thunder:

Gosh, even Odin has heard of Jane Foster--and this was well before the days of LinkedIn.

Loki delivers Odin's decree to the Enchantress with glee, knowing that, with the Enchantress's ambition to win the heart of Thor, it won't take much prodding on his part to secure her cooperation. Thus, it isn't long before the Enchantress pays a house call on Dr. Blake, and comes within a hair's breadth of putting him under her spell. But for once, Jane's timing is impeccable:

The Enchantress concludes that to get to Blake, she'll first have to dispose of Jane. You'd think that would be easy for a spell-caster--but apparently the Enchantress believes this calls for heavy-duty assistance:

(Gee, I hope she clarified to the Executioner exactly what she meant about Blake's eyes--otherwise he's liable to conclude that all he needs to do is to blind the poor guy.)

Still, check out the tracking ability of the Executioner, which is just the coolest. "Falcon hunting vision," indeed:

With Jane in limbo, it looks like the Executioner has fulfilled his part of the bargain. But before he can return to the Enchantress and settle up with her (notice how I avoided lewdness and didn't say saddle up with her), Thor gets word of the Executioner's presence in the city and confronts him.

Give the Executioner credit--even a guy like him knows when to throw in the towel. Especially if he's holding enough of an upper hand to pull victory from defeat:

Granted, Thor's caving in here is a blunder on so many levels. On the other hand, considering his hammer's enchantment, it's not a bad way to play for time. Unfortunately, that's more the way things work out than any strategy on Thor's part, thanks to the Enchantress's discovery of the Executioner's double-cross:

That leaves the Enchantress vs. Thor. But for someone who can weave spells "without limit," she caves pretty quickly, herself--and with neither of these foes a threat any longer, Thor practically dismisses them back to Asgard.

But, what about the woman who was indirectly responsible for this fiasco--Jane Foster? I don't know, Thor--maybe you've sent the wrong woman packing?

(Better avoid walking by Tiffany & Co., Don--this woman has marriage on the brain!)

By the way, about that cover box:

Is this the God of Thunder, or some guy's yearbook photo?