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Post by codystarbuck on Jul 2, 2021 11:13:42 GMT -5
I'm not a fan. Every story I ever read with her, she was a completely unlikeable character, deliberately so. The haughty attitude and the holier-than-thou speaking pattern and then she usually failed to make much of a difference in the battle. Just nothing that made me want to see her in a story, no matter how well drawn. When she turned heel in Avengers and murdered Drax, that felt like a logical evolution, to me. Granted, I've only read bits and pieces of Englehart's run on Avengers.
Sometimes, no matter how much you try to book a character as a babyface, the crowd will always treat them like the heel.
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Post by berkley on Jul 2, 2021 17:42:13 GMT -5
Yeah, it was Englehart's Avengers that formed my impression of the character and nothing that came after - or even, to a lesser degree, before - ever quite captured the character in the same way. I haven't read the later appearances exhaustively but I think it was Shooter in the Avengers and Gruenwald(?) in Marvel Two-in-One who first began to exaggerate the arrogance to stupid levels and at the same time made the character ineffectual: in other words a character designed for fans to dislike, as opposed to the subtly ambiguous figure Englehart gave us. I think there was a lot of unconscious misogyny at play there, along with a complete absence of nuance.
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Post by codystarbuck on Jul 2, 2021 22:03:42 GMT -5
Yeah, it was Englehart's Avengers that formed my impression of the character and nothing that came after - or even, to a lesser degree, before - ever quite captured the character in the same way. I haven't read the later appearances exhaustively but I think it was Shooter in the Avengers and Gruenwald(?) in Marvel Two-in-One who first began to exaggerate the arrogance to stupid levels and at the same time made the character ineffectual: in other words a character designed for fans to dislike, as opposed to the subtly ambiguous figure Englehart gave us. I think there was a lot of unconscious misogyny at play there, along with a complete absence of nuance. Possibly, but anytime I saw her in MTIO, earlier Defenders (before the Peter Gillis stuff) or Starlin, I just hated the character. Like I said in my review of MTU, Marvel was just as misogynistic as the old guard at DC, if you look too closely. Shooter definitely had issue with women and so did Michelinie, who paired up with them. Gruenwald wrote some decent female characters, then had them being pawns of others, like in Squadron Supreme. Even Power Princess never comes across as a well-rounded character in that and so much focus is on the male characters, with Lady Lark mostly there to be brainwashed, for Golden Arrow's downfall and others there pretty much to fill quotas, given how little they have to do.
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Post by berkley on Jul 2, 2021 22:41:54 GMT -5
Yeah, it was Englehart's Avengers that formed my impression of the character and nothing that came after - or even, to a lesser degree, before - ever quite captured the character in the same way. I haven't read the later appearances exhaustively but I think it was Shooter in the Avengers and Gruenwald(?) in Marvel Two-in-One who first began to exaggerate the arrogance to stupid levels and at the same time made the character ineffectual: in other words a character designed for fans to dislike, as opposed to the subtly ambiguous figure Englehart gave us. I think there was a lot of unconscious misogyny at play there, along with a complete absence of nuance. Possibly, but anytime I saw her in MTIO, earlier Defenders (before the Peter Gillis stuff) or Starlin, I just hated the character. Like I said in my review of MTU, Marvel was just as misogynistic as the old guard at DC, if you look too closely. Shooter definitely had issue with women and so did Michelinie, who paired up with them. Gruenwald wrote some decent female characters, then had them being pawns of others, like in Squadron Supreme. Even Power Princess never comes across as a well-rounded character in that and so much focus is on the male characters, with Lady Lark mostly there to be brainwashed, for Golden Arrow's downfall and others there pretty much to fill quotas, given how little they have to do.
I think most of those are later, though, IOW after the arrogance was played up in a very crude way by people like Gruenwald and Shooter. The Starlin you're referring to I'm guessing is from Infinty Watch or something else from the 90s or 80s? Because in his early 70s Captain Marvel vs Thanos story, which is where I think he first used the character, she isn't particularly arrogant, IIRC - more just formal and reserved, like many alien characters in popular SF, e.g. Mr. Spock. Of course, in her very earliest appearances she was a villain, or near enough to it. I think it was first Gerber in Daredevil that made her a more ambiguous character, then Starlin and Engelhart a heroine, more or less, though a very odd one - which was one of the things I liked about her. I admit I haven't read these comics for a long time, so my chronology might be a little mixed up.
The Marvel TiO story with Warlock and "Her" might have been the very first one to really write the character as not only arrogant but stupidly arrogant - in contrast to the many arrogant male characters of the time that were still granted a certain kind of respect, whether villains or heroes: e.g. Dr. Doom, the Sub-Mariner. And yes, the Shooter story where she turns villain again, takes over a planet, brainwashes Thor, etc, reeks of misogyny. And yet that and the Marvel TiO is the version later writers have chosen to follow, which doesn't say much for all those other writers, either.
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Post by codystarbuck on Jul 7, 2021 18:28:34 GMT -5
Marvel Team-Up #45Spidey & Killraven You know, I thought I covered this in my Killraven thread; but, it appears not. So, get ready for a meeting of Spidey and Killraven, that will return to the status quo, at the end. Creative Team: Bill Mantlo-writer, Sal Buscema-pencils, Mike Esposito-inks, Jean Izzo-letters, George Roussos-colors, Marv Wolfman-editor Synopsis:Spidey wasted the last few issues not rescuing Scarlet Witch and failing to stop John Proctor from being hung as a witch. He's moping more than usual, though far be it for comics for him to mourn the dead a little. Instead, he spouts wisecracks at a zombieoid Cotton Mather, before Doom's time machine takes him away from 17th Century Salem, MA. He seems to have caught the express platform, to the future... He gets a front row seat as history zips by, until he sees Martian tripods attack New York and gets dumped off the platform. It takes about a minute before he runs into Killraven.... ...who must have rode really fast from Georgia, which is where he was, in the latest issue of his own series (Amazing Adventures #36). Spidey hops on an d they avoid energy blasts, while Spidey does a Rogue Squadron maneuver on one of the tripods, toppling it. They kill the guy operating it. More attack and Spidey swings up and KOs an operator, while Killraven uses more permanent means. Killraven then fills in Spidey about his past and the Martians, while Martian soldiers sneak up and gas them, taking them prisoner. They go on a head trip for a bit... ...and then wake up and find that they beat the crap out of the soldiers. Spidey hops back on the platform and disappears. Thoughts: Sal & Mike are no replacement for P Craig Russel and Mantlo is no Don McGregor. This is more pointless than the usual team-ups as nothing comes of it. Spidey gets a glimpse of an alternate future, but he can't really prevent it, as any action just sets up an alternate timeline, according to how Marvel worked these things. For Killraven, it's just another day in the wars and nothing really comes of it. The hallucinations have them seeing Volcana Ash and the Green Goblin. So, there are some moments to wax philosophic, but no real deep insights. Mark Gruenwald later wrote that Spidey couldn't alter this future, since it wasn't his, as there is no Martian invasion, in 1900, in his past. That's all well and good; but, the Guardians of the Galaxy did include the Killraven timeline in their history, as well as the Marvel hero "present"; so, that doesn't really stand up to much scrutiny. It's a true timeline if you want it to be and an alternate if you don't. this is why time travel usually sucks, in these things. Something else always bothered me about this and Doom's time portal; I can accept passing through time, via comic book science. However, how is Spidey and anyone else moving through space, as well? this isn't a TARDIS, moving through both. It would seem, based on Wells' original tale, that the time machine would take the voyager forward or backwards within the same location, yet Spidey goes from Salem, MA in the 17th Century to 21st Century New York (2 years ago). Shouldn't have ended up in 21st Century Salem? Marv is asleep at the wheel, since Killraven is elsewhere when this story occurs, though maybe it was a different point in his timeline. See why I am not a fan of most time travel stories? Comic books, at least? You have to work out the details more than Mantlo obviously has; otherwise, it just induces headaches and No-Prizes. Next time, Deathlok gets the same treatment.
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Post by codystarbuck on Jul 7, 2021 19:04:54 GMT -5
Marvel Two-in-One #45Thing & Captain Marvel Not the real one, obviously. Creative Team: Peter Gillis-writer, Alan Kupperberg-pencils, Mike Esposito-inks, Mike Higgins-letters, Phil Rache-colors, Roger Stern-editor Synopsis: Some bruiser in a trenchcoat buys a newspaper and flips the vendor a nickel, when the paper costs 20 cents. He asks if the vendor wants to make something of it and the man decides that it isn't worth 15 cents. The bruiser talks about the Thing messing up his operation, which seems odd, given who he is... Meanwhile, Mar-Vell is near Denver, reading the Close Encounters Marvel Super Special (or a Starlog issue, possibly), when his Cosmic Awareness kicks in and he goes to track down the source of the alert, which takes him into the upper atmosphere and he senses danger for Ben Grimm and gets hit by an energy bolt. Ben & Alicia are having dinner, which is interrupted by a phone call... The call is a threat and Ben crushes the phone. Later, as they leave, a 1920s sedan roars up and Ben tells Alicia to go back inside the restaurant. He gets hit by tommy gun fire and the car takes off. ben hails a cab and chases, then leaps onto it, only to get whisked away, into the air... Ben rips open the car roof and it disappears, dumping him into the river. He comes to on the shore, with Alicia and Mar-Vell standing over him. Marv says he got a psychic reading of this, but doesn't know where the perp went. They end up waiting in a tenement, in Brownsville (in brooklyn) and Marv tries to sense, while Ben plays cards. Ben has had enough and goes for a walk and gangster Ben turns up and zaps Marv, who knows it isn't Ben. Real Ben runs into a crime boss, from the planet Kral, from FF #91, where a group of Skrulls have turned the place into the Roaring 20s. Gee, that sounds familiar. The mob boss reveals that Torgo, the gladiator robot Ben fought (not the servant of The Master, in Manos, the Hands of Fate) has been rubbed out. Ben is taken prisoner and about to face a firing squad... ...when Marv turns up and busts some heads, then Ben breaks free and smashes the place, then the boss attacks with a warcraft and the Torgo head zaps him and removes the illusion, leaving the Skrull in his true form. And that is pretty much it. Thoughts: Meh.................. Not horrible, not great, not particularly engaging. Not as funny as the Trek episode ("A Piece of the Action"), not a great Ben story, not much of a Mar-Vell story. Just kind of middlin'. Next time, Ben battles the Hulk, in Burbank!
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Post by codystarbuck on Jul 11, 2021 14:34:55 GMT -5
Marvel Team-Up #46Spidey & Deathlok! Creative Team: Bill Mantlo-writer, Sal Buscema-pencils, Mike Esposito-inks, John Costanza-letters, Petra Goldberg-colors, Marv Wolfman-editor I covered this in my Deathlok thread; so, I'm not gonna spend a huge amount of time on this. Synopsis: Spidey emerges in a different alternate future and finds Deathlok targeting some kids, in Times Square... He attacks Deathlok and spoils his aim. Deathlok backhands him and the kids attack with the cubes they are holding. The heroes counter-attack.... Spidey is told that it is 1990 and Deathlok's computer doesn't include mention of him. The kids are mutants and he was hunting them. They stumble into a sniper situation, swiped from Ian Fleming's From Russia With Love... (Bond and Darko Kerim shoot the leader of the Bulgarian hit team, as he emerges from a hiding place, behind a painting of Anita Eckberg, on the side of the building) Spidey takes out the snipers, with Deathlok joining in , at the end, then they face a crowd of muties, led by a guy in a generic villain costume, who is revealed to be a kid. Spidey tells off Deathlok and grabs the time portal out and Deathlok goes off to have his showdown with Ryker, that occurred at the end of the series, in Astonishing Tales #36. Thoughts: Again, a pointless story that just hits the reset button, at the end. Spidey leaves without altering that future and returns to the past to a time where he cannot alter that future, since it is a parallel timeline, or some other BS. Sal's Deathlok is a bit on the dull side and lacks the spark that Rich Buckler gave it, if you can believe that (I actually liked Buckler's art, when he wasn't deliberately trying to ape someone). I don't get the purpose of these stories, since the two guest stars (Killraven and Deathlok) were pretty much done with their own series. This doesn't continue the story, like Deathlok's other appearances and you can't say it is promoting the other book, really. Just seems like they were stuck for a guest star and decided to throw these guys in, with the proviso that you couldn't change anything. Might as well had Spidey team up with Night Nurse and pre-Hellcat Patsy Walker.
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Post by brutalis on Jul 11, 2021 15:03:36 GMT -5
I think Editor or Publisher decisions might explain quite a bit of MTU at the time. It seemed like most co-stars during this time were all secondary or B-listers. Marvel mandate might have been to use Spidey as the big name push (he was placed into lots of series in their early issues to get sales) while utilizing lesser known characters to keeping him in the limelight.
This gave opportunity to push other series like Avengers, Defenders, Fantastic Four as well as seeing what sales increases there might be from the guest stars. What better way to "judge" the viability or interest to bring back series or characters? Let the wall-crawler carry the major weight of the stories while giving a taste of other heroes out there in the Mu.
Would readers go out to follow Moondragon or Wanda/Vision, Nighthawk or Valkyrie? Not likely but it does let readers know to pick up Avengers or Defenders. Recently cancelled folks like Mar-Vell, Killraven, Deathlok, Warlock and others that had cult status and fans would get a bump for more reader attention if worthy to continue into new series down the line.
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Post by codystarbuck on Jul 11, 2021 15:14:25 GMT -5
Marvel Two-in-One #46Thing & the Hulk! Creative Team: Alan Kupperberg-story, pencils & colors; Chic Stone-inks, Shelly Leferman-letters (except pg 1, from Gaspar Saldino), Roger Stern-editor Synopsis: Ben is watching tv, griping about the Hulk getting his own tv show.... He loses it when the Hulk gets the girl and does an Elvis on his tv (with his foot, instead of a pistol). Reed tells him off and suggests he talk to the producers, if he has such a beef with the situation and off to Hollywood we go. In Tinseltown, three stuntmen who were fired off the show concoct a scheme to kidnap Karen Page, who was given a million dollars to co-star in the show, showing that Alan K has no clue about 1970s tv salaries. Elsewhere, in a Nevada desert town, Bruce Banner has come down from being the Hulk, then discovers his image has been pirated for a tv show and Hulks back up.... The next day, ben arrives at the studio and is harangued for ID and rips out the guard post to demonstrate that he really is a rock monster in a Hawaiian shirt! Ben goes looking for the producer's office and they do a Howard the Duck visual gag, but it's actually Uncle Waddles, a kid show host. Ben finds the office and the producer oozes slime all over him. The guard gets his guard post back up, after the three ex-stuntmen sneak in, just in time for Hulk Smash! He tears through the lot, trying to find the man in charge and busting up the set of MASH (or the Marvel equivalent). Ben and the producer feel tremors, but the producer says it is an eathquake, baby. The hoods try to nab Karen Page, who isn't impressed, after DD's foes, then Hulk smashes his way into the producer's office and he and Ben go at it. Ben spots the kidnappers, but can't get to them unless he can lose the Hulk. He eventually does and chases the hoods into a soundstage, where Hulk tunrs up and smashes things and sets collapse and ben rescues Karen and the actors and Hulk lightens up... Karen backs out of contract negotiations and leaves and Ben pitches his own tv show to the producer, who promises to put Ben into a show, when the right thing comes along. Eventually it does, but Ben isn't happy.... Aw, geezo, ya meathead! Thoughts: A return to form, with a fun issue of Hulk and Ben in Hollywood, poking fun at the then-current Incredible Hulk tv show. Should have had Hulk chasing Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno, though. I would have also had Stan schmoozing another producer, trying to sell marvel properties for film and tv, since that was what he was doing. They should have revisited this and had Spidey, Cap and Dr Strange all show up and gripe about their ill-fated tv movies and shows. The FF was back in the Baxter Building, after having broken up, previously, but you'd hardly know it, as Ben seems to be sitting in an average living room, at the start. You'd think Reed would have designed some kind of high tech barcolounger for Ben.
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Post by tarkintino on Jul 11, 2021 17:17:59 GMT -5
Thoughts: A return to form, with a fun issue of Hulk and Ben in Hollywood, poking fun at the then-current Incredible Hulk tv show. Should have had Hulk chasing Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno, though. I would have also had Stan schmoozing another producer, trying to sell marvel properties for film and tv, since that was what he was doing. They should have revisited this and had Spidey, Cap and Dr Strange all show up and gripe about their ill-fated tv movies and shows. Heh--well, by the time MTIO #46 hit the stands in December of 1978, the two Captain America TV movies had not yet aired--both would premiere in 1979. About Spider-Man, according to Tomorrows Publishing's Age of Heroes, the Spider-Man TV series was pretty successful: CBS' moving the series from one schedule to another led to the inability of once-loyal audiences fro finding / supporting the series, so ratings dropped for that, as opposed to any creative failings.
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Post by codystarbuck on Jul 11, 2021 18:17:23 GMT -5
Creative failings are in the eye of the beholder. It was pretty dull, especially without credible villains. The Japanese series, from Toei, as gonzo as it was, was way more exciting.
I'm okay with the second Captain America film, thanks to Christopher Lee as a much better villain and some decent action. The first pilot is kind of up and down, though it had some good moments. They really screwed the pooch on the shield, though.
Dr Strange isn't horrible, but it isn't exciting, either and just looks low budget.
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Post by zaku on Jul 11, 2021 18:18:53 GMT -5
Spidey is told that it is 1990 and Deathlok's computer doesn't include mention of him. I wonder how famous Spider-Man was supposed to be in the 1970s in the Marvel Universe. Less than Captain America, more than Daredevil? Did people who weren't from New York know him?
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Post by codystarbuck on Jul 17, 2021 14:30:59 GMT -5
Marvel Team-Up #47Already covered earlier, in conjunction with MTIO #17, when Ben & Spidey teamed up, against Basilisk. So, we are going to skip that and go into... Marvel Two-In-One #47Thing and the Yancy Street Gang! Creative Team: Bill Mantlo-writer, Chic Stone-artist, Diana Albers-letters, Bob Sharen-colors, Roger Stern-editor Synopsis: Some hoods are roughing up some Yancy Street residents... This being 1979, they are armed with tommy guns and are dressed like they stepped out of a Warner Bros movie. They have a letter addressed to Ben Grimm, and want to know the contents. The gang member says it's just their annual birthday message to the Thing, and Mr Carnation buys that, but says he is going to have a peaceful birthday, this year. He tells them to get back to work and button their lips, ya mugs! Turns out, the YSG bluffed Carnation, as the letter was a distraction from the package they already sent Ben. Cut to the Baxter Building, where Ben is playing Blind Man's Bluff with Franklin, while everyone else in the FF cheats to keep Ben from getting near Franklin. Oh, and Agatha Harkness is there, magicking away Franklin and Reed and herself, proving it was Agatha All Along... After Ben runs smack into the wall and is knocked loopy (um..............doesn't Ben punch mountains?), he is presented with his cake and presents and proceeds to blow the candle into the wall, along with the candles. Willie Lumpkin turns up with a special delivery, which is ticking. it's from the Yancy Streeters and Ben tosses it and Sue covers it in a force field, allowing it to explode harmlessly. It leaves behind a flower arrangement and a card. ben reads it and stays behind as the rest go to a concert, and he seems preoccupied, beyond the normal sparring with the YSG (Represent!). Ben hops onto his jet bike and heads over to the old Yancy Street neighborhood... The card asked for help and Ben intends to find out what would spook the YSG. He comes in for a landing and is observed by the hoods. They radio da' boss, who says dem Yancy mugs was holdin' out on them. Mr Carnation tells the big boss, who says he expected Ben's arrival and that he will not depart alive. As Ben descends to a landing, he is hit by surface-to-air missiles. That does nothing for his disposition and he ignores the thought of where the YSG would get military-grade hardware. Then, some semi trucks come at him, lights glaring, exterior building lights add to the disorientation, and fire hydrants shoot out high pressure streams of water. Ben gets knocked off his feet and grabs pavement, ripping it up so he can rip open the water main. instead, he gets a faceful of gas and gets loopy, just as robots climb out of manholes and attack. The YSG take this as their moment to strike and batter the hoods with pipes and wrenches, then help Ben with the robots... However, the robots are powerful and they stun Ben into unconsciousness. The YSG see Ben fall and scatter (cowards!), leaving ben to the big boss, Machinesmith! Thoughts: Nice issue, focusing on the annual fight between Ben and the Yancy Street Gang, but with a twist; their neighborhood is being controlled by criminals. They send a message, via their usual present gag and get Ben's help; but, it turns out it is more than just mobsters shaking down the neighborhood. The Yancy Street Gang go back to FF #6, in name and #15, in action. Originally introduced as antagonists for Ben, from his old neighborhood, who antagonize him, pulling pranks on him, mocking him, and other hijinks. Yancy Street was inspired by Delancy Street, on the Lower east Side of Manhattan, near where Jack Kirby grew up (on Essex Street). the tradition was that you would never fully see a member; usually a hand or the top of a head, tossing something over a fence, dropping it from a building, or running around a corner, after pulling a prank. they were inspired by the neighborhood gangs of Kirby's youth, plus the various stage and movie kid gangs, like the Dead-End Kids. Here, they are only seen from behind or with their faces obscured by helmets or something between them and the reader. Later, it was retconned that Ben's older brother ran the gang and ben ran with them, before moving onto other, better things. Machinesmith makes an interesting villain, with his automated weapons and robots adding a real menace that would require the Thing. normal hoods would have been easy pickings for the YSG. This is only set-up, as ben has been captured; so, expect the YSG to help another hero rescue Ben and trash Machinesmith. In this case, it will be Mantlo's Jack of Hearts, the character hated by most artists, who routinely cursed Keith Giffin's name.
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Post by codystarbuck on Jul 17, 2021 16:01:46 GMT -5
Marvel Two-In-One Annual #2I covered this issue in my Thanos thread. So, i won't repeat myself. It was the climax of the second Thanos epic, where he first locates and combines the Infinity Gems, as they were then called, to create a device to destroy the universe. This spun out of the Warlock series, into Avengers Annual #7, where Warlock is essentially killed and drawn into the Soul gem. Thanos is opposed by the Avengers, Captain Marvel, Ben Grimm, Spider-Man and Warlock and, ultimately, it is Warlock who destroys Thanos, turning him to stone. That would later be refined as The Infinity Gauntlet mini-series/crossover, where Thanos once again assembles the infinity Stones (not gems) onto a gauntlet and uses their power to wipe out half of existence. All of that fed into the MCU version of Thanos and Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame (as well as Guardians of the Galaxy, in the form of Gamora). So, we will move ahead to MTIO Annual #3Thing and Nova.... Creative Team: Marv Wolfman-writer/editor, Sal Buscema-layouts, Frank Giacoia and Dave Hunt-inks, Joe Rosen-letters, Phil rachelson-colors Synopsis: Nova is flying along, happy that life seems to be going his way, when a high steel worker falls over the side of a building, along with some I-beams. Nova catches both the man and the beams, in an awning, and then flies off, until encountering intense sunlight and heat. he saves an old woman from being hit by a car, just as a figure steps through some kind of portal, and towers over the city, like Galactus' second cousin, Irving. Then, a tripod machine turns up and Nova tries to get irving's attention and get zapped by eye beams (instead of I-beams). He goes for help, but the Avengers are out; so, he raids the Baxter Building, setting off alarms and waking The Thing. He tells ben to follow and leads him back to Irving, who is laying waste to New York's Finest. Meanwhile, in Paris, a similar thing is happening at the Eiffel Tower; but, the Frenchmen don't notice because they are munching on baguettes, sipping coffee and smoking Galois. Further meanwhile, some sci-fi chick beams down to have a chin-wag with ben and Nova... She is Milandra, from a group of space women who battle the Monitors, who come to planets and judge their fitness for survival. Ben isn't happy about that and they go with her to stop the Monitors. Gee, some of this sounds familiar. Milandra was captured by the Monitors and her energy powered their machines. She shows the heroes her sister, Kalara, who is trapped inside a tube. Milandra is not sure how she escaped. They go to free Kalara, when a Monitor turns up. Ben decides "It's Clobberin' Time!" and he and Nova attack the Monitor. They battle, but the monitor shrugs them off. milandra and Kalara turn up and tell the Monitor that he is toast! They bugger off and leave the Monitor, who dumps Ben out into the sky, to be rescued by the Fantasti-Car. Meanwhile, Tokyo is being threatened and Godzilla is busy, so Ben has to take charge. Milandra and Kalara are there, to free another sister, who powers the ship; but, are repulsed. Ben turns up and attacks, but is pulled away by Milandra. She explains that the Monitors are ancient beings, who perfected their own world and sought to test others, aiding the worthy and destroying the unworthy. Eventually, their quest for perfection led them to destroy worlds deemed less than perfect. They came to Earth; but, Milandra, unconvincingly, still says she doesn't know how she awoke and gained her freedom. Nova got himself dumped into a space warp and expends a lot of energy to break free, but finally succeeds, plummeting to Earth, though he pulls out in time (this gets kind of confusing, as it is broken up by the Thing's separate bit, in Tokyo, and it isn't clear how Nova ended up in the warp). Nova meets up with Ben and the space women, in Tokyo and distracts the Monitors, so the women can free their sister, which works, this time... She is destroyed by the Monitors, revealing that the women are advanced, intelligent robots. The Monitor's do their Godzilla impression on Tokyo and even Mechani-Kong isn't around. Ultraman and Johnny Sokko do not turn up and Kamen Rider is busy with Shocker. Nova attacks and gets knocked to Mt Fuji and Ben rescues a woman and her child. Nova comes back and attacks and goads the Monitors into following him to Mt Fuji, then knocks one into the volcano. he explodes and then the three robot women appeal to the remaining one to end the cycle and he does, revealing he is the one who freed Milandra... Thoughts: The story is rather chaotic and confusing and Nova's trip to space comes out of nowhere and isn't fully explained until later. Nova ranges between ineffectual and extremely powerful, which was a frustrating element to the character, in the wrong hands, as his powers seemed to reflect plot convenience. the character, itself, is a swipe of the Green Lantern Corps, as Richard Rider gained the Nova costume and abilities from a dying member of the Nova corps, from the planet Xandar. Pretty much the same origina as Hal Jordan, as green Lantern, a member of an intergalactic police force (which was, in turn, swiped from EE Smith's Galactic Patrol, the intergalactic peace-keeping force of the Lensman Saga, whose super-powered agents, the Lensmen, can do extraordinary things, thanks to the lens that is bonded to them). Marv originally created the character for his earlier fanzine, Super Adventures, with a slightly different power set, based on alien pills that gave him different powers (and he was called The Star). Marv & Len Wein refined that into the Marvel Nova, as an homage to Spider-Man, as a working class teen hero. The series was short-lived, but a cult favorite and he made several guest appearances (good to have your creator is EIC) for a time. He went away and came back a few times and sort of made the MCU, via Guardians of the Galaxy, as the Nova corps are presented as a galactic police force that arrest Peter Quill and the rest, bringing them together, so that they become a team, when they help each other escape. This is really kind of a middling story, all things considered; but, it is interesting to read, as it is obvious that Marv recycled some ideas here into Crisis on Infinite Earths, as he presents a new Monitor, who tests the Earth, for allies to fight the Anti-Monitor, who is then aided by Lyla, a female assistant, who becomes Harbinger, the herald of the Monitor. That, in itself, is swiped from Galactus and the Monitors seem rather Galactus-Lite, with some of Jack Kirby's Celestials. So, yeah, Kirby was bad mouthed behind his back, while his concepts were swiped by young punks (Not saying Marv mocked him, specifically; but, people at Marvel were treating Kirby with a lack of respect and earning their living off his creations. Marv was certainly earning his bread and butter at the table that Kirby laid out). Anyway...meh. Definitely not up to the previous Annual, or even the average MTIO issue, from Marv.
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Post by codystarbuck on Jul 22, 2021 17:16:38 GMT -5
Marvel Team-Up #48Spidey & Iron Man! And "Hot" May..... Creative Team: Bill Mantlo-writer, Sal Buscema-pencils, Mike Esposito-inks, Jean Hipp-letters, Janice Cohen-colors, Marv Wolfman-editor Synopsis: A radio controlled model airplane flies over a Stark International facility and drops a bomb, just as Spidey is swinging by. The explosion it sets off knocks Spidey towards Long Island..... He tries to use his web shooters to snare a building, but they seem to be damaged. he plumets towards a cemetary, shen Iron Man turns up and snatches his hand, pulling him to a safe landing. Spidey explains what happened and iron man offers an alternate theory that Spider-Man committed the sabotage. Spidey tells him to stick it in his charging socket and they argue about privacy, as Iron man Shows him a paste up note. Spidey tells off Iron Man, since it's his title, but their exchange is interrupted by Bonnie Parker... ...better known as Capt Jean DeWolff, NYPD. She shows Shellhead the remains of the plane and another letter and says this is the 5th bombing. Spidey senses something wrong and dives into Capt DeWolff, knocking her into an open grave, as the plane explodes. Iron Man's armor withstands the blast. De Wolff says the same thing happened in the previous attacks (so why did you stand next to the plane?) and tells the boys to grow up and cooperate and help the police. Meanwhile, someone goes inside a mausoleum and down the stairs to a chamber below, and it isn't Denny Colt or Ebony White. DeWolff tears back to the station in a vintage 1920s roadster, with Spidey riding shotgun and Iron Man providing air support. they arrive at the station and the captain asks for an update and the desk sergeant decides to have a little fun and finds himself demoted to patrolman... She then shows Web and Shellhead some films from the previous attacks, where a shadowy, possibly masked figure is seen in the background. the notes are on official police stationary and the letetrs cut from the Police Gazette. As they talk, a shadowy figure appears in the background, outside the window... A model plane crashes through the window and DeWolff tries to shoot it down, with her service revolver. Iron Man blasts it back out the window, with his repulsors. He goes after the pieces, to keep them from exploding near innocent bystanders and gets blown to the ground and out cold. Spidey goes after the shadowy figure, who fires a rocket launcher at him. Spidey climbs up the building, but ends up a prisoner of the Wraith! ...and I don't mean Michael T Gilbert's canine detective! Thoughts: Here we first meet captain Jean DeWolff, NYPD, who will stick around a bit, in the pages of various Spider-Man comics, before being murdered, by Peter David (well, as writer of the story). The Faye dunaway look was a gimmick, as the character was obsessed with the 1930s and dressed like Bonnie Parker, as in Bonnie and Clyde. In fact, Faye Dunaway is the obvious model for Sal Buscema's design... We learn she is the daughter of the 2-years retired police commissioner and she is tough and doesn't suffer fools lightly. Other than that, all we know is the mysterious Wraith carried out these bombings and has Spidey in his clutches, at the end. The significance of the mausoleum will become clearer in the next issue; but, the idea is a swipe of Will Eisner's the Spirit, as he lived below Wildwood Cemetery, where he was buried, while still alive (thanks to a potion). This isn't the first time Marvel swiped from The Spirit, as Dr Stranges funky window, on his brownstone, was swiped from Denny Colt's window, by Steve Ditko. This is a nice recovery, after a rather bad stretch of issues, from Mantlo. DeWolff is an interesting character (though where you get a vintage 1930s roadster, on a cop's salary, is a puzzle) and we have a good little mystery going, as to who this bomber is and why he is carrying out these acts. This has some meat to it and feels like it could have a real ending, unlike the two future issues, or the trip back to Salem.
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