Soon, my limbs shall be swifter than ever before– while your hex power once again shall dazzle and defeat your enemies! All we need is patience, my sister– and an unaltering faith!
The Avengers are off to South America to save Goliath. And presumably will be here when Galactus attacks.
Hawkeye now likes Captain America, but still dislikes orders. As do I, Hawkeye. As do I.
Wasp recalls how they all used to share the command. It’s the first time they’ve really addressed this change. The original team had rotating chairs. The new team had Captain America as permanent leader. Given this, Hawkeye’s annoyance was understandable.
Featuring: Avengers Release: May 10, 1966 Cover: July 1966 12 cents Stan Lee: Writer Don Heck: Artist Frank Giacoia: Inker Sam Rosen: Letterer Irving Forbush: Arbitrator 20 pages
But, the past is over now! The past is dead! You are the master no longer! I’m free of you… at last!
We just saw Galactus appear in the middle of New York. There to devour the Earth. The Avengers have a mansion in the middle of New York. Why didn’t they help out?
Well, maybe they were away. Where? Surely not just elsewhere in New York fighting Black Widow. Maybe off wherever the Collector’s castle is? Or in the middle of the Atlantic fighting Attuma? Or perhaps they were in the “Far-Off Land”, as the title suggests. It seems likely they were quite far away.
Now, the Avengers won’t make it to the titular Far-Off Land this issue, but next issue.
And Marvels will claim this is where the Avengers were when Galactus attacked. Which is good enough for me.
Goliath! I like the sound of that! That’s what I’ll call myself from now on– Goliath!!
Today… Hank Pym will be infamous for having taken on too many superhero identities… but this isn’t new. This was a pretty early feature of the character. In under 5 years, he’s on 3, and sort of 4, identities.
When we met him, he wasn’t a superhero at all, just a scientist named Dr. Henry Pym. A year or so later he jumped on the superhero bandwagon as Ant-Man. Another year down and Lee decided the public wanted more powerful superheroes, so Ant-Man became Giant-Man. Those changes all somewhat made sense. But now… he’s no longer Giant-Man… he’s Goliath. That change seems gratutitous.
With the new name comes a new status quo. But he’s had a lot of status quos already. We attempted to recount in the final issue of his ongoing series, Tales to Astonish #69. The rules just keep changing. He drinks a liquid or takes a pill or uses his mind. And he can only chage size every so often or hold the new size for so often or…
Anyways, now he can grow to 25 feet and only 25 feet and remain that way for exactly 15 minutes, no more, no less.
We’ve met one other Goliath, the biblical one, in Avengers #10.
How does he get the new name anyway? It’s a bit weird. We basically learn it’s happening from the cover and title.
We are getting ahead of ourselves. The story begins with Hank Pym contacting the Avengers to help him find the Wasp. We’d last seen her attempting to escape from Attuma. Of course, they don’t know who Dr. Pym is. Because of secret identites.
Now, as secret identities go… Wasp’s costume often didn’t cover her face… she often called Giant-Man Henry or Hank in the presence of others… Giant-Man’s lab was a well known location where his fan club hung out… the kids Jan read sci/stories to knew she was the Wasp… Hank sometimes did experiments in his own house and one day he accidentally turned giant and came bursting out of his house…
Featuring: Avengers Release: January 11, 1966 Cover: March 1966 12 cents Incredible script by: Stan Lee Inconceivable art by: Don Heck Indescribable inking by: Frank Ray Indelible lettering by: Artie Simek 20 pages
He endures so much– to hold the Avengers together! And yet– none can help him! He walks– alone!
A recap. Giant-Man and the Wasp left the Avengers in Avengers #16. Then in Tales to Astonish #69, they agreed it was time to retire from superheroing and work on their relationship. And presumably on Pym’s scientific interests as well. Flash forward to Tales to Astonish #77 and Hank’s experiments involve drilling into the ocean to learn the secrets of life. These experiments are wreaking havoc on Namor’s domain. This leads to conflict. Namor breaks their equipment and then decides to head to New York. In a nonsensical plot decision, Jan decides to become the Wasp once more to race Namor across the ocean to New York. But she’s the size of a wasp, and can presumably fly at about the speed of a wasp. She obviously can’t cross an ocean. But she tries anyway.
Unsurprisingly, we haven’t heard from her since. Surprisingly, we will hear from her again.
I’d like to start thinking about something as we read the next several Avengers comics. At some point very soon, the Fantastic Four are going to fight a massive global threat, one the Avengers probably should have helped them with. The Avengers do not show up to help, which implies the Avengers are busy. So let’s be on the lookout for where the Avengers might be at the time that they don’t notice a very noticeable world-ending threat.
Featuring: Prince Namor, the Sub-Mariner Release: January 4, 1966 Cover: April 1966 12 cents Blue ribbon story by: Stan Lee Prize winning pencilling by: Adam Austin Academy Award winning inking by: Vince Colletta Booby prize lettering by: Artie Simek 12 pages
Fire! The one element which is alien to me! The one element I fear!
Austin had unmasked as Gene Colan last issue. Not sure why were are back to the pseudonym.
We are into Namor’s second story arc in his new series. Though it will turn out to be less of an arc than a bunch of loose threads. Surface experimentation is threatening Atlantis; Namor resolves to go to the surface to stop it; the earthquakes created unleash the Behemoth; Namor finds Hank Pym and Janet Van Dyne–formerly Giant-Man and Goliath–responsible for the testing.
Featuring: Prince Namor, the Sub-Mariner Release: December 2, 1965 Cover: March 1966 12 cents Stan Lee, writer Gene Colan, penciller Vince Colletta, inker Sam Rosen, letterer 12 pages
Supreme is the head that wears the crown! The decision must be Namor’s alone to make! Imperius Rex!
A secret has been revealed! Not to us, because I spoiled it when he first showed up. But this is the first time Gene Colan’s name has shown up in the credits. Yet it’s clearly the same artist as last issue, drawn by “Adam Austin”. So Adam Austin must be Gene Colan!
Just like superheroes have secret identities, artists do too. In this case, it was likely to disguise the fact that he was moonlighting for both DC and Marvel. Some comic artists used pen names so that their lesser comic work wouldn’t get conflated with the great novels or works or art they were one day to create. For many, it may have been to make their names sound less Jewish.
Since Namor got his own series back in issue 70, he’d been on a continuous quest to retake his kingdom from Krang. Last issue was almost a clean ending to that quest, save for the final pages. Namor was now the ruler again, with Lord Vashti his Grand Vizier. But then an earthquake strikes, and Namor suspects atomic tests of the surface world are responsible. He resolves to go to the surface world to sort this.
If Namor is the ruler of Atlantis, why is he Prince Namor? Why not King Namor? The Atlanteans must do it differently.
Vashti sits on Namor’s council and offers the wisdom that the choice of action is Namor’s, as the absolute monarch. Then why even be on the council, Vashti? Namor knows it’s his decision. Advise him!
This next story arc is going to get quite convoluted. The last one was relatively clean. Krang had taken the throne. Namor needed to recover some ancient artifact to reclaim it and followed a series of clues. This story begins with an earthquake and Namor’s plan to go to the surface world to get them to stop the tests. Let’s see where it goes from there.
Featuring: Giant-Man and Wasp Release: March 4, 1965 Cover: June 1965 12 cents Stupefying script by: Stan Lee Stereophonic art by: Bob Powell Stultifying inking by: Vince Colletta Schizophrenic lettering by: S. Rosen 12 pages
Who is Giant-Man’s #1 archnemesis? I had previously suggested it was Egghead, and my friend Dan countered with the Human Top. His original run only featured three repeat super-villains, Porcupine being the other. He fought Egghead 4 times and now Human Top 3 times. But two Human Top stories are 3-parters so Human Top appears in 5 different issues. They’re both strong contenders. Maybe we’ll see which are in more significant stories in the decades to come. So far, neither has been in any story I would call particularly significant. The possible exceptions are issues 57 and 59. 57 is significant for guest-starring Spider-Man and happens to feature Egghead. 59 is significant for guest-starring Hulk and happens to feature Human Top.
Neither is a particularly good villain.
Honestly, I would argue Porcupine is the best of the 3 villains, which is why he will go one to find better nemeses than Giant-Man and Wasp.
The issue opens with Human Top crashing a plane into Giant-Man to knock him unconscious. He’s stumped as to what to do next. Even unconscious, Human Top can’t figure out how to harm a giant.
The last time Human Top had Giant-Man at his mercy, he didn’t want to harm him. He thought locking him in a closet would be enough satisfaction.
Featuring: Giant-Man and Wasp Release: January 5, 1965 Cover: April 1965 12 cents Story: Smilin’ Stan Lee Art: Beamin’ Bobby Powell Inking: Friendly Frankie Ray Lettering: Sunny ol’ Sherigail 12 pages
The Giant-Man tale is hogging most of the cover real estate.
Wasp doesn’t seem to be recognized as a co-lead for the second issue in a row. This is just described as a Giant-Man story. The covers have long since omitted her name.
Yes, we are falling farther and farther behind in our Hulk reading.
As before, it’s not actually a new Giant-Man. He just has a new hat.
Madam Macabre is an evil analogue to Giant-Man, with the power to make things shrink or grow. Not knowing she is evil, Giant-Man considers partnering with her, until he learns she thinks they can rule the world together.
Featuring: Giant-Man and Wasp Release: December 10, 1964 Cover: March 1965 12 cents Writer: Stan Lee Illustrator: Bob Powell Inked by: Don Heck Lettering by: Sherigail 12 pages
The cover boasts of a new Giant-Man. They just mean a new costume, one which will not prove enduring. The corner box has already been updated with the new look.
We met Bob Powell in Strange Tales #130. He’s taking over two titles this month.
We met Sherigail the letterer once before in issue 55. Various websites, including Marvel’s official site, misattribute the lettering of Sherigail. Nel Yomtov had been kind enough to reach out and let me know that Sherigail is a pseudonym for Morrie Kuramoto.
We’re getting ahead with the Giant-Man/Wasp stories and behind with the Hulk stories in this title. We’ll catch up to the Hulk stories eventually.
Featuring: Fantastic Four Release: December 10, 1964 Cover: March 1965 12 cents Proudly produced by: Smilin’ Stan Lee and Jolly Jack Kirby Inked by: Chic Stone Lettered by: Artie Simek 21 pages
The main credits are shared between Stan and Jack without specifying who did what.
Fantastic Four has been one of the best of these Marvel superhero titles since the start, but it’s regarded as one of the best comic series ever, which hasn’t yet been obvious. The series gets better at some point. It can be hard to pinpoint the exact point of transition. We noted issue 29 when Kirby started using photo collages as a step toward greatness. The introduction of the Frightful Four in this issue also suggests we are well down the path. Particularly the mysterious Madam Medusa.
Sue and Reed announced their engagement last issue. They’ve now made a public announcement, and the press is excited, underscoring their celebrity status. There will be a big engagement party this issue.
Also, I think Sue’s gotten a haircut. Her hair definitely seems shorter.
