Featuring: Fantastic Four
Release: November 12, 1963
Cover: Februrary 1964
12 cents
Written by: Stan Lee
Illustrated by: Jack Kirby
Inked by: George Bell
23 pages
We open with a dinosaur running loose. Ben refers to Reed as “Stretch”. This nickname will stick.
We get some drama with the team. Reed is being too bossy, so they try to pick a new leader. It doesn’t go well. Reeds turns out to be the only fit leader on the team. After all, Johnny is a teenager. Ben loses his temper so easily. And Sue is a woman.
The last issue promised the Four would face off against four super-villains this issue. Turns out they meant one super-villain and three henchmen. At least by my count.
Dr. Doom recruits three henchmen and empowers them to defeat specific members of the Fantastic Four. He makes Bull Brogin strong enough to take on the Thing. Yogi Dakor becomes flameproof.
Handsome Harry’s hearing is heightened to help him, uh, harrow the hard-to-see heroine. Hence, he hears her heartbeat and… hinders… her.
“Only I would bail three criminals…” I know Dr. Doom is all about ego and bravado. Reminds me of a certain president. But to claim that only you could bail 3 criminals out of jail… you’re pushing it, Doomsie.
We see a wealthy Maharajah gifting a million dollar car to the Torch. The Torch sees nothing suspicious about this.
Just keep your cool, Admiral.
Thing shouts: “It’s clobberin’ time!” He used the exact same phrase last issue. I wonder if it’s becoming something of a catchphrase.
Then it all gets weird. Dr. Doom transports his henchmen to another dimension, then a solar wave sends their room into space.
Dr. Doom falls into space. It’s the second time he’s fallen into space. Last time he was rescued by an alien species called the Ovoids that taught him to teleport back to earth. That event was so unlikely that it’s impossible to believe anything could save him this time. I assume this is the last we’ll see of Dr. Doom. Too bad, as he had potential as a villain not yet realized.
Rating: ★★★☆☆, 54/100
Significance: ★★★☆☆
I read this story in Fantastic Four Epic Collection vol. 2: The Master Plan of Dr. Doom. (Hey, the collection is named after this story!)
The scans are mostly taken from a reprint in Marvel Collectors’ Item Classics #17 (1968), save a couple taken from the digital version.
You can also find this story in Marvel Masterworks: Fantastic Four vol. 3. Or on Kindle.
Characters:
- Thing
- Mr. Fantastic
- Invisible Girl
- Human Torch
- Bull Brogin
- Handsome Harry Phillips
- Yogi Dakor
- Dr. Doom
Story notes:
- Dinosaur escapes from Doom’s time machine.
- Dr. Doom’s time machine had been transferred to Reed’s lab.
- Doom had robot that looked like a human.
- Bull Brogin a strong enforcer.
- Handome Harry a con man.
- Yogi a fireproof man in circus.
- FF try to elect a new leader and they all vote for themselves.
- Doom’s XZ-12 increases natural abilities of his henchmen.
- Ben gets letter from Yancy Street Gang.
- Gunga Din reference (probably racist).
- Brogin has cosmic-beam gun to turn Ben human.
- Doom makes Thing robot.
- Dr. Doom sends assistants to another dimension.
- Doom didn’t know about Sue’s new power.
- Thing’s second use of phrase: “It’s clobberin’ time”
- Thing calls Reed “Stretch” for the first time.
#143 story in reading order
Next: Strange Tales #117
Previous: The Avengers #3
