Featuring: Human Torch and Thing Release: August 11, 1964 Cover: November 1964 12 cents Stan Lee is our inspired writer Dick Ayers is our admired penciller Paul Reinman is our desired inker S. Rosen is our tired letterer 13 pages
Mad Thinker and Puppet Master team up to destroy the Fantastic Four; the plan is to use puppets to manipulate Thing and Human Torch into fighting.
I swear we’ve already read this story. Maybe I’m thinking of Strange Tales #116 where Puppet Master used puppets to manipulate Thing and Human Torch into fighting. Or Fantastic Four #28 where the Mad Thinker and Puppet Master teamed up to destroy the Fantastic Four.
Stan refers to the alliance of the Puppet Master and Mad Thinker as the “Deadly Duo”. That’s what Stan called the alliance of Dr. Doom and Namor in Fantastic Four #6. I guess there are so many alliterative appellations for abhorrent alliances.
Featuring: Spider-Man (for the moment) Release: August 11, 1964 Cover: November 1964 12 cents Written by: Stan Lee, author of “The Fantastic Four” Illustrated by: Steve Ditko, illustrator of “Dr. Strange” Lettered by: Sam Rosen, letterer of… “Patsy Walker”??? 22 pages
Check out that cover. Quite the contrast with pretty much every other superhero cover. The superhero is usually portrayed as tough, dramatically standing against the odds. In the worst case, the cover might show the villain winning, but the superhero remains defiant. This one has Spider-Man cowering and hiding from the villain.
In this story, Peter decides to quit being Spider-Man. He’s thought about it before, but he’s about to actually quit for the first time. It won’t be the last time, or even necessarily the most famous time. A similar story will get told and retold across decades of Spider-Man stories and even make its way into Spider-Man 2. (More directly, the film borrowed from Amazing Spider-Man #50, which borrowed from this issue.)
Note we’re reading this and the last issue together because they make a strong arc when read together. In terms of continuity, it has been weeks since the conclusion of the last issue, so it’s likely several other heroes’ adventures we’ve read occurred in the interim.
The story begins with everybody reacting to Spider-Man’s retreat: heroes, villains, people on the street… guy can’t run away from a single fight without everybody having an opinion. Ditko is great at people reacting to things.
Wasp notes that wasps and spiders are natural enemies. Always found that a weird thing to say. But she’s said it before and she’ll say it again; it’s an obsession of hers whenever the topic of Spider-man comes up.
This is an excellent comic for helping shape the nature of the relationship between Human Torch and Spider-Man. They’ve had some banter and conflict before, but also teamed up. A friendly rivalry. We saw how friendly last issue when Johnny attended the Spider-Man Fan Club meeting and then was quick to help Spider-Man against the Goblin. Now, he seems uncertain. He witnessed Spider-Man’s cowardice firsthand, but still wants to think better of his friend.
Featuring: Spider-Man Release: July 9, 1964 Cover: October 1964 12 cents Ruggedly written by: Stan Lee Robustly drawn by: Steve Ditko Recently lettered by: S. Rosen 22 pages
The Green Goblin returns. I was not impressed with this villain in his first appearance. I am not that impressed with him 60 years later. But he is perhaps Spider-Man’s most popular villain, considered by many to be the definitive Spider-Man villain. Why?
I have a theory, a cynical one, mind you. Perhaps Team Goblin folks can correct me. My theory is this: Green Goblin is the villain in all the best Spider-Man stories, most of which would work just as well if you substituted in any villain. Case in point: this story.
A classmate of Peter’s refers to the James Bond novels. The character had already made his way into at least two films by this point as well. We’ll look back to the current place in pop culture of James Bond when SHIELD gets introduced, to see if we detect any influence.
This remains the only series to really handle the out-of-costume soap opera well. Almost every other title needs to keep its focus on the mission or the villain. Here, the villain shows up for the fight on page 13. Stan and Steve are confident they can fill 12 pages with character work, and they can.
Green Goblin has a new glider. Last time, he had a flying broomstick instead. This is definitely cooler, and he notes it’s faster and more maneuverable… but the old one he specifically noted was designed to make fatal error impossible. He neglects to mention if this new glider has been so designed.
That bottom middle panel. We’ve basically seen it before.
The Green Goblin reveals his arsenal: pumpkin, ghost, frog, moon, bat. Of these weapons, the pumpkin will prove surprisingly enduring.
Featuring: Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandoes Release: August 11, 1964 Cover: October 1964 12 cents Two-fisted tale by: Ex-Sarge Stan Lee, U.S. Army Power-packed pencilling by: Ex-Corp. Dick Ayers, U.S. Air Force Inking by: Geo. Bell Lettering by: Art Simek 21 pages
This is a familiar story. Captain Sawyer is temporarily replaced by the uptight rules-obsessed Captain Flint.
He does things like insist on uniform regulations that end up giving their position away on a mission that required subterfuge.
By the end of the story, the Howlers have taught him to loosen up a bit. I don’t much care for rule sticklers myself, hate when I have to work with them. My experience is that they don’t come around quite so easily in real life.
2020 has been a complicated year, but it did afford me unexpected free time to work on this blog. I thank you all for reading along.
This seems a good time for something of a midterm exam on the blog. So here we go. On the website Sporcle, I made a quiz. It asks you to name all the heroes and villains from the first 230 entries in our Marvel Universe reading. I counted 200 significant characters, as well as 100 slightly less significant characters, who appear as easter egg bonus answers. Can you name all 300?
Featuring: Avengers Release: August 11, 1964 Cover: October 1964 12 cents Sensationally written by: Stan Lee Superbly illustrated by: Don Heck Selectively inked by: Dick Ayers Sufficienty lettered by: Art Simek 21 pages
Featuring: Captain America Release: August 11, 1964 Cover: November 1964 12 cents Author: Stan Lee Illustrator: Jack Kirby Inked by: Chic Stone Lettered by: S. Rosen 10 pages
Captain America is back with his own series, more or less. He doesn’t get the title of the magazine, but he gets a regular feature. He and Iron Man will be sharing Tales of Suspense. Very few characters get the title of the magazine. Daredevil and Spider-Man are special like that.
Captain America of course debuted in his own self-titled mag, Captain America Comics, way back in 1941. He was one of Marvel’s most popular superheroes for the entire decade. His comic was then retitled into Captain America’s Weird Tales for its final two issues to focus on the burgeoning horror genre. The final issue in 1950 didn’t even feature Captain America.
They tried a revival of the Captain America series in 1954, but it only lasted three issues. Fans were not as interested in seeing Cap smash Commies as they had been seeing him battle the Nazis a decade earlier.
Ten years later, they’re ready to try again. This time, the character will endure. Within 4 years, they’ll change the title of this comic to Captain America and that series will basically continue (with the occasional renumbering) to the present, over 55 years later.
All that said, this series doesn’t quite begin with a bang.
As the cover indicates, it’s a moment of big change for this title. The science fiction tales are gone, and the horror stories (or tales of suspense) this title was founded on are long gone. But gone now also are the Watcher stories, which blurred the line between the older science fiction tales and our new superhero ones.
Henceforth, this title will contain two stories: an Iron Man adventure and a Captain America adventure.
Captain America’s return has been successful enough to give him his own title, but Marvel is still artificially limited in the number of titles it can publish, and seemingly reluctant to get rid of titles, preferring to repurpose them. Thus Captain America and Iron Man have to share a book. Just as Hulk has to share Tales to Astonish with Giant-Man and Wasp, and as Dr. Strange has been sharing Strange Tales with Human Torch and Thing.
Recall that Professor Nathan Garrett adopted the identity of Black Knight and fought Giant-Man and Wasp. He was not the first Black Knight, but the first of modern times. He genetically engineered a flying horse and built an arsenal of gadgets and weapons, primarily his multifunctional lance.
The fancy credits neglect the contributions of Chic Stone and Art Simek.
Having been defeated, he agreed to join the Masters of Evil to fight Giant-Man and the rest of the Avengers.
Having been defeated by the team of superheroes he attacked, he now wants revenge, and so is planning to attack the Avengers individually. He begins with Iron Man, starting with an attack on Stark’s factory.
Featuring: Daredevil Release: August 4, 1964 Cover: October 1964 12 cents Sensational story by: Stan Lee Awe-inspiring art by: Joe Orlando Infallible inking by: Vince Colletta Lots of lettering by: S. Rosen 22 pages
Daredevil still has that stupid hood sack thing to keep his civilian clothes. They had somehow taken a bad costume and made it even worse.
Fortunately, he’ll realize early in the issue that it’s impractical to the point of imbecilic and we’ll be rid of it.
This issue introduces Purple Man, who has the power to sap people’s wills and make them responsive to his commands. Only Daredevil seems resistant to his influence.
Featuring: Tales of Asgard Release: August 4, 1964 Cover: Ocotber 1964 12 cents Author: Stan Lee Illustrator: Jack Kirby Delineator: Vince Colletta Letterer: Sam Rosen 5 pages
I think the Mountain Giants are a new set of villains. They seem to be careful naming the groups of giants. We’ve met the Frost Giants and the Storm Giants. Now, we meet Mountain Giants. Their queen is Knorda, a normal-sized woman.
