Featuring: Nick Fury, Agent of SHIELD
Release: October 12, 1965
Cover: January 1966
12 pages
Senses-shattering story by: Stan Lee
Power-packed presentation by: Jack Kirby
Drama-drenched drawing by: Don Heck
Dreamy-designed delineation by: Joe Sinnott
Booboo-bulging balloons by: Sam Rosen
12 pages
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| Strange Tales #139, Story B | Reading order | Strange Tales #140, Story B |
| Strange Tales #139, Story B | Strange Tales | Strange Tales #140, Story B |
Mankind cannot live in fear of Hydra! In the name of SHIELD… in the name of universal freedom… I cannot fail!
Kirby. Heck. Sinnott. That’s a lot of artists to draw 12 pages of comic. (A heck of a lot.)
“Booboo-bulging balloons” took a bit of deciphering. I think Stan’s claiming the letterer makes a lot of mistakes. The word balloons are bulging fit to burst with mistakes.
Hydra could have served as a looming background threat for some time to come. But they decided it was time to settle it up. This is part 6 of the “Hydra Saga”. SHIELD agents are swarming Hydra’s headquarters for the final battle.
Nick Fury has escaped his captors with the help of Agent H, daughter of Imperial Hydra.
Tony Stark himself is piloting the braino-saur into space to disable Hydra’s bomb.
Imperial Hydra stands revealed as Arnold Brown. Not Farrington as they had attempted to misdirect us into believing, but his meek secretary.
Hydra is defeated, but Brown has escaped and is about to hit the self-destruct button to destroy his headquarters, including all the SHIELD agents, Nick Fury, and his own daughter. We’ll come back here for the finale next issue.
I’m not really certain when Stark’s appearance here best fits. It seems like we should be after his battle with Titanium Man (and hence the Avengers’ battle with Swordsman) by now, but the MCP thinks this all takes place before the Titanium Man battle, and they may be right. It’s a tight squeeze either way.
Rating: ★★★½, 60/100
Significance: ★★★☆☆
Characters:
- Colonel Nick Fury
- Agent H
- Dum Dum Dugan
- Gabe Jones
- Imperial Hydra/Arnold Brown
- Anthony Stark
Story notes:
- Hydra’s mechanized hunter has ensnared Nick Fury.
- Betraton Bomb still in orbit menacing Earth.
- SHIELD force attacked by Tiger Division.
- Dugan calls for Flying Wedge Formation.
- Skate Board Unit A ordered to engage SHIELD with Plan Apache.
- Skate Board Unit B sent after Fury and Agent H.
- Stark pilots Braino-saur to disable orbiting bomb.
- Imperial Hydra orders Operation Last Resort, which will mean sacrificing his own daughter.
- Bob Hope reference.
- Imperial Hydra revealed as Farrington’s secretary Arnold Brown, at Imperial Industries International.
| Previous | #425 | Next |
|---|---|---|
| Strange Tales #139, Story B | Reading order | Strange Tales #140, Story B |
| Strange Tales #139, Story B | Strange Tales | Strange Tales #140, Story B |
