It's a disturbing trend that we've seen developing in regard to the bruising, bloody threat of the Blood Brothers, who first appeared in 1973 as enforcers of the will of Thanos of Titan--but even more disturbing concerning the invincible Iron Man, who in consecutive battles has needed to be paired up with additional muscle from a second party in order to hold his own against these brutes. First, in responding to a telepathic distress call, he joined forces with Drax the Destroyer against their mutual foes; and in a second encounter with the pair later that year, he and the Thing successfully derailed their threat, after which a wrathful Thanos used the Cosmic Cube to (presumably) eliminate his thralls.
But in mid-1976, the Blood Brothers resurface, having escaped whatever fate Thanos had consigned them to when he met defeat himself at the hand of Captain Marvel--only to now find themselves acting in accordance with the commands of the Controller, who needs their assistance in freeing his trapped form from tons of rubble he found himself beneath at the site of his own clash with Mar-vell. Fortunately for the Blood Brothers, securing transportation isn't much of a problem, after stopping for a quick bite.
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And so these two head for New York, and a third encounter with Iron Man (who, coincidentally, goes way back with the Controller), crashing their way through police blockades en route. The prospect of Iron Man finally heading into a battle with the Blood Brothers on his own could certainly be a clash that we readers would be down with--after all, writer Archie Goodwin wouldn't have him being forced to enlist the help of another hero, right? Right?
All right, so you're thinking "Daredevil? Daredevil??" Someone who has no super-strength, mixing it up with the Blood Brothers? Does anyone know DD's next of kin? Actually, artist George Tuska will show us that Daredevil is capable of using a steel girder as a springboard, which, I don't care how often you work out, you're not going to move one iota that easily unless you've got a little super-strength tucked away that we don't know about. Yet Tuska and Mr. Goodwin apparently beg to differ, so what do I know. But I think both would agree with me in at least berating Mr. Cover Captioner, who announces the menace of the "Brooding Blood Brothers!" I can't imagine the Blood Brothers would be doing a lot of brooding, if any.
Nor, thank goodness, is Iron Man interested in brooding when they finally appear, as he knows full well who and what rampaging killers he's facing as they arrive at their destination with a vengeance.
Another repulsor ray blast, full strength, shatters a support column and brings down a section of the west side highway, burying the Blood Brothers under the debris. To his dismay, however, Iron Man sees the two emerge and renew their attack--and though he begins to put the pieces together as to the nature of their power, it's all he can do to defend himself against their overwhelming assault, though to no avail.
No question that the Blood Brothers have done a number on Iron Man--and to add insult to injury, given how they stalk off to complete their mission it's clear that they considered him mostly an annoyance. Not a thought Iron Man would want to take to a watery grave, which might just turn out to be the case in light of the state of his armor after taking such a beating.
Which happens to be the moment when a certain Man Without Fear, drawn to all the commotion, is due to make his appearance as this issue's guest-star.
Though he has an important flight to catch, DD agrees to work with Iron Man to end the Blood Brothers' threat. To be honest, while I may have my problems with some aspects of Mr. Tuska's work in relation to his character depictions, I'll readily admit he's laid out a good story that engages the reader and provides Goodwin with what he needs to work with--and on a more broad note, I'll add that his imprint on the book of a "buff" Iron Man in both posture and action came close to being the character's definitive look for me, one that rivaled even Gene Colan's approach.
And you may find he depicts a more than passable Daredevil, to boot--though confronting the Blood Brothers in the hopes of overpowering them seems as doomed to failure no matter who ends up at your side.
(I had mused at one point as to when Iron Man's roller skates made the transition to "rocket" skates, and it looks like we have our answer here.)
Finally, Iron Man manages to piece together what may be the Blood Brothers' vulnerability, one that he and DD are quick to put to the test--lending credence to the adage "divide and conquer," but also allowing Iron Man to administer the coups de grâce that he's been longing to deliver to both of these brutes.
Er--I believe that's "symbiontically" linked, Shellhead. (Are "symbiontic" and "symbiotic" interchangeable? We may have to add it to our listing of some of Marvel's intriguing word choices.)
On today's first page, the perspective on panels 8 & 10 makes the Blood Brothers resemble the Bi-Beast ("Skull brothers"!) Another similar pair/double act is Gog & Magog! Incidentally, Tuska's DD was also interesting, in DD Annual # 4.
ReplyDeletePhillip
Phillip, that annual is now on my list to take a look at, thanks. For me it holds the distinction of being the first DD annual that didn't consist of reprints!
ReplyDeleteIs this during the period when both Iron Man and Daredevil was selling so low that Marvel spent a time considering whether to join the two heroes in a combo team book (like they did with Power Man and Iron Fist)?
ReplyDeleteI remember reading somewhere that was a real option that Marvel was considering. Thankfully that never happened. Iron Man and Daredevil are so distinct in their concepts and power levels that an ongoing partnership would not make much sense.
Chris
Chris, the merging you're thinking of was floated five years prior to this, when Marvel increased both the size and the price of some of its main titles in 1971, but backtracked on the idea the following month. The details are scarce on exactly how the Iron Man/DD book would work out, though I have a feeling it would have been along the lines of the old Tales Of Suspense format which would simply split their stories, rather than a partnership between them (which, as you note, would have been impractical).
ReplyDeleteA DD/Shell-head double act? Well, "Thor"'s secret identity, as "Mike Murdock", is a busted flush!. After all, Iron Man knows the real Thor is Don Blake! Maybe, with Iron Man's connivance, DD could pretend he's Don Blake, rather than Mike Murdock, dressing up as Thor. It's all too complicated!!!
ReplyDeletePhillip