Sadly, "Scarface" Was Taken

Can YOU

Name This Marvel Villain??

Would You Believe--The Howling Sorcerer Supreme!?

For a man who spends so much of his time in meditation and study--not to mention fending off I don't know how many other-dimensional hostile mystic forces--it's interesting how Dr. Strange can still kick back in the social scene. And no wonder--before he studied at the feet of the Ancient One, Stephen Strange was quite the society man who relished his wealth and fame.

That Stephen Strange may be gone, for all intents and purposes--but the learned, deliberative Dr. Strange with a cloak of levitation and the Eye of Agamotto still knows his way around the occasional bar or pub, and it's a rare pleasure when we see him "take it easy." Two such scenes that come to mind for me have the doctor running into crowds that couldn't be more different, yet people with whom he fits in with astonishing ease. The first is in a noisy village hangout while giving his disciple and lover Clea a long overdue night out, where we meet his neighbor, Sara Wolfe:

And the second has him running into, of all people, the Howling Commandos, as he and Morgana Blessing traverse a mission through time:

"Don't tell me that Dr. Strange gets into the middle of a brawl with the Howling Commandos!", I can hear you gasp. No, that wouldn't do--as the doctor himself would be the first to tell you:

Strange doesn't yet know who he's running into when he first sits down with Morgana. But, as we learn in a humorous scene, perhaps that's because his spell has deprived Nick Fury of one of the man's most recognizable traits:

And while Lady Hawley is on the same page with Strange as far as talking shop about Morgana's medical condition, it's clear that the other gentlemen in their party would probably feel more at home in that brawl they don't remember:

Soon enough, duty calls for Fury and Dum Dum Dugan, leaving Strange to tend to Morgana and proceed with their journey. And no doubt with dispatch; word is that Strange is now a big fan of Pierce and Larry.

To Rise Again!

Things didn't look too good when we last left Thor, after his battle with the Destroyer.

Actually, things looked terrible. Thor was dead.

But while Thor was getting pummelled and charred to a cinder, there was a story within the story taking place--in the form of paramedic Jake Olson, who was in the war zone trying to save lives while the Avengers fought with Thor to end the Destroyer's threat. We'd already been given curious indications of a sort of connection Jake was experiencing with the Thunder God--circumstantial acts which seemed, at times, to give this mortal man just as much of a heroic bearing as Thor.

Tragically, Jake fared as badly as Thor during the battle--mortally wounded by shrapnel while trying to help a civilian, moments before Thor met his own end.

And the Avengers, mad as hell and ready to avenge their fallen comrade, may be on their way to being added to the body count.

The Velocirator and the Sitting Duck

Have a look at an utterly splendid bit of horseplay with Ben Grimm (the Thing) and Johnny Storm (the Human Torch) that soon reels in the whole family, choreographed by Scott Lobdell and Alan Davis for the reboot of Fantastic Four in 1998. Did they get it right?

Onslaught Of The Destroyer!

It would take a braver man than I am to attempt to make sense of the events of Onslaught (the evil persona of Charles Xavier), a sales device used to abruptly end a few of Marvel's major titles so that other creative teams could place their stories in alternate timelines for roughly a year. To readers, it almost felt like Marvel was going through a refit, with its work on four of its major titles being outsourced to other studios which effectively called the shots for the duration. To make a long story short, the project didn't go smoothly. There were reportedly a lot of business reasons behind Onslaught, and perhaps in the long run those proved fruitful; but by the time everything began to be reset in the Heroes Reborn: The Return four-issue series, enough writers and artists had been shuffled around that it was difficult to tell just who made up Marvel Comics at that point. "Marvel Disassembled," you might say.

So, cringing at the thought of wading through the whys and wherefores of the whole "Heroes Reborn" storyline, which engulfed The Avengers, Captain America, Mighty Thor, Fantastic Four, and Invincible Iron Man (have I missed anybody?), let's instead cut to early 1998 when the "Heroes Return" stories brought back these characters into their respective realities, picking up where they left off before they defiantly charged Onslaught. I'll happily bypass the entire "Heroes Reborn" detour, if it's all the same to you.

So. Marvel, looking to make lemonade out of lemons, harvests a good sales event from a confusing one and now relaunches the hijacked titles, resetting them all to #1 (which might well have been the plan all along, once "Heroes Reborn" had run its course)--all emblazoned with "Collector's Item 1st Issue!" captions. And from January to February of 1998, our heroes' new titles make their debut. Here's our first look at Iron Man, the FF, Cap, and the Avengers:

The good thing about returning from alternate realities is that you can pretty much plug in your characters from where they left off--and so, with the exception of Captain America (who finds himself displaced a year and presumed dead), everyone is none the worse for wear. The only odd man out is Thor, whose rebooted title is strangely absent from this mix. You'd think Marvel would have gone for an incredible looking lineup on the sales rack by including, of all characters, Thor in this sales push. Yet the new book is delayed until July--perhaps because Marvel was still picking up the pieces and had its hands full in terms of available staff, or perhaps even to hold the Thor book in reserve in order to provide a little more profit a few months down the road. We do know that it was Thor who had sacrificed himself in a final battle with Dr. Doom, by hurling the two of them into a rift between realities--so his delayed appearance is at least explainable in a fictional sense, and could perhaps even build anticipation.

Still, the absence of Thor's new title is even more perplexing when Thor is on hand to launch the new Avengers title, after discovering Asgard in ruins and finding that the fabled "Twilight Sword" is missing from the realm (thanks to Morgan Le Fay):

And so by the time Thor's new title appears on the rack, his return had already been dealt with and taken the wind out of the new book's sails (though hopefully not "sales"). For his new book, the only thing really on Thor's plate is to find out what happened to the gods of Asgard--and searching for your people isn't the best way for a dynamic figure like Thor to kick off his brand new series. This is the God of Thunder, not the God of Mystery. Instead, then, we're going to see Thor joined by the Avengers in a no-holds-barred battle with a deadly, invincible foe. So you might want to get a good look at Thor in this dramatic double-page splash:

...because by the end of the issue, he's going to be dead.

(Gee, that could be why they're calling it a "Collector's Item.")

Hulk Smash Impasse!

After the incredible Hulk returned from his exile to the "Crossroads," the brute underwent a procedure that separated him from his shared existence with Bruce Banner, only to later go on a senseless rampage through the town of Stoneridge, New Mexico:

Yet, behind the scenes, the character was having a conference with his creative team--writer/artist John Byrne, Editor Denny O'Neil, and Asst. Editor Don Daley--concerning a small difference of opinion.

It ended about as well as things in New Mexico.

A Team And Its Toys

Back in the day--that is to say, before GPS, cell phones, or, for that matter, the Internet--part of the fun of reading Fantastic Four was in seeing all of the incredible gadgets and machinery that sprung from the mind of Reed Richards (with Johnny Storm pitching in his own mechanical skills on occasion). The FF's gadgets were almost like the FF's fifth member--important to their operation as a team, and just as essential as the Baxter Building itself.

Of course, Reed got his inspiration from artist Jack Kirby for the FF's first one-hundred issues, and then it fell to other artists to carry on the tradition. In time, we'd see innovations like HERBIE, which in a way was Reed's own deadly Ultron (though through no real fault of his own). And given the wear and tear (especially the tear) the FF would put the Baxter Building through, a device like "Auntie" would earn its keep:

(I really think Auntie should be available on Amazon. Just sayin'.)

But it was the book's Silver Age stories which had groundbreaking revelations in technology that at the time could only be imagined. Which made for a good match; after all, if you had super-powered people, it added to the excitement to see devices and equipment that could leave you equally wide-eyed.

(Hey, this was years ahead of card swipes!)

In Fantastic Four, it was the Fantasti-Car that led the way, getting its debut in issue #3 as little more than a four-compartment hover/carrier, though Johnny and Ben would improve on that design (as well as adding much more bulk) a few months later:

After Kirby left the book, artist John Romita would slim down the car with a more sleek design. When John Buscema came aboard as artist, he would trim the car down further, leaving it with a very basic look (which Kirby also dabbled with):

Though at times it seemed to resemble something of a flying tube:

Reed's jet cycle, another team transport vehicle, seemed like an attempt to keep fans interested by giving them a more contemporary and "souped up" way for the FF to get to and from their destinations, though to me it was one of Kirby's clunkier-looking designs:

At times, Reed would modify an already existing design, with always interesting results:

The FF's "pogo plane," despite its unusual name, had a fairly basic design for an aircraft. At one time it even had a propeller:

But later, it was modified and given a little more use, edging out the jet cycle as the FF's mode of transport when the Fantasti-Car wasn't practical. Its "pogo" description seems to come from its ability to quickly take off vertically, and then rapidly ascend to a point where it can then arc back down to its destination:

That function would be similar to (and certainly less expensive than) the FF's NASA missile, which didn't see much use to justify its custom-built silo in the Baxter Building. The missile seemed built for missions which were long-range, or which required the FF to get to their destination within minutes. But given that we're talking about plunking down some serious change to use a booster rocket, it's probably no wonder that its use was sparse:

While its maneuverability was limited:

And I doubt NASA took kindly to the Torch using it to make a trip to the Himalayas to see his girlfriend, to say nothing of its destruction:

Frankly, I don't know where Reed found the free time to equip the FF with all of these incredible inventions, to say nothing of conducting his own research and projects. I guess it was no surprise to hear Sue complain about Reed's priorities all the time...

...though it's funny how she'd occasionally let that slide.

Spidey Cops Out!

Spider-Man copping out?

As the Beast would say, "That trick never works!"

At least this issue isn't about Peter Parker deciding to abandon his identity as Spider-Man, with another toss of the costume into a nearby garbage can. But when you read the issue, there's not much of a difference--Peter is just deciding he has more important things to do than to step in as Spider-Man when someone is in trouble or a crime is in progress. Of course, taking that attitude is what got his uncle killed, but it's obvious he isn't listening to the voice of reason right now.

As to what's so important to elbow its way to the top of Peter's list of priorities, we have to go back a couple of issues, where we find Gwen Stacy finally blowing her top at May Parker for being too doting an aunt for a grown man:

Gwen is darn lucky that her little outburst didn't trigger another one of May's heart attacks. But, what's this got to do with Spidey turning his back on the people who need him?

Irresistible Force Meets Very Movable Object

Anatomy of a smackdown:

Radical Chic

If nothing else, "They Shoot Hulks, Don't They?", Roy Thomas's adaptation of the title of the 1935 novel "They Shoot Horses, Don't They?", will make you curious to read Horace McCoy's tale of a group of desperate dance contestants/Hollywood wannabes (or even to see the later 1969 film). (It sounds fascinating.) But as for the Hulk tale, you may end up scratching your head if you attempt to make some connection between the two. There's no real similarity between Gloria Beatty, the woman who's shot by her husband because of his likening of her to a lame horse, and any character in Thomas's story, nor does the odd collection of dance contestants resemble the pretentious group of Thomas's wealthy socialites.

That said (and it's an important point to get out of the way, right off the bat), the Hulk story is a rather fun read--and, as it notes, a sort of bookend to a similar tale of the Sub-Mariner taking over "Prison Island" in the waters off New York City (another Thomas story) and the overblown response of public opinion and intervention which pour forth as a result. In the Hulk's case, that media hornet's nest is stirred up when he seeks nothing more than a secluded spot to rest, albeit a very visible secluded spot:

Naturally, the area is cordoned off, tension mounts, and even "Thunderbolt" Ross buzzes the statue and tries to get the Hulk to leave. But all the security in place has reckoned without the Parringtons, who see in the Hulk's plight an opportunity to elevate their social status in a good faith but misguided effort to help this less fortunate creature:

The Parringtons understandably make little to no progress in relating their wishes to the Hulk. But their daughter, Samantha, has better luck:

And so the Parringtons take the next step with the Hulk, which to them makes perfect sense: holding a cocktail party/fundraiser, with the cream of society in attendance.

I don't think the Hulk is impressed.
(Which, to this crowd, is probably worse than the threat of being smashed.)