Featuring: Captain America
Release: August 9, 1966
Cover: November 1966
12 cents
A Stan Lee Jack Kirby pandemonium-packed production!
Delineated by: Richard Ayers
Lettered by: Samuel Rosen
(Or: How formal can ya be?)
10 pages
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| Tales of Suspense #83 | Reading order | Tales of Suspense #84 |
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What can be wrong? I’ve adapted everything about Captain America… and yet… there is still a quality lacking!
AIM has fallen, but a dying Count Royale warned SHIELD that their creation the Adaptoid may yet finish their work.
The Adaptoid, a pantograph, infiltrated Avengers headquarters by assuming Jarvis’ form, then drugged Captain America, and assumed his form. He has also stolen Captain America’s shield.
Unfortunately for the Adaptoid, if you look like Captain America, his enemies become yours. The Tumbler has come to challenge Captain America and prove his superiority. So now he’s the Adaptoid’s problem.
The Tumbler easily defeats the Adaptoid, and now he has Captain America’s shield.
The Adaptoid was able to absorb Captain America’s power and speed, but there’s more to what makes Cap great, subtleties that his mimicry couldn’t capture.
We learn the origin of the Tumbler. Something about a circus. And now he wants to prove himself against Captain America.
He thought he did prove himself, but then the real Captain America breaks free, and he beats the Tumbler with ease.
What’s the difference between Captain America and an apparently exact copy? Again, it’s the subtle things.
There’s only one Captain America. Accept no substitutes.
The Adaptoid is defeated and Captain America leaves him tied up and unguarded.
Let’s see some letters.
One letter stands out from Marvin Wolfman, to become better known as Marv, singing the praises of that epic battle with the Red Skull which I also loved.. He would have been 20 years old at this point. In about 2 years time, he’d get his start working at DC, then go back and forth between DC and Marvel for decades, famous for his work on Tomb of Dracula, Amazing Spider-Man, Batman, and the New Teen Titans.
In theory, this Adaptoid story is resolved, but I have my doubts about whether just leaving him alone in the mansion was a good idea. So we’ll jump ahead to the next issue to make sure this Adaptoid situation is stable, and also hopefully finally see Stark’s testimony to Congress.
Rating: ★★★☆☆, 53/100
Significance: ★★★☆☆
Characters:
- Tumbler
- Adaptoid/Captain America
- Captain America
- Jarvis
Story notes:
- Tumbler attacks Avengers mansion, mistaking Adaptoid for Captain America
- Adaptoid’s orders to defeat Captain America and then attack SHIELD.
- Tumbler reflects on his origin: Rejected by everybody, inspired by Captain America, he joins the circus to train as a tumbler/acrobat. Then trains with the strong man, dodging pins of the jugglers. Criminal gang that had rejected him arrested, so he went to test himself against Captain America.
- Cap cites Avengers priority, code 37-B.
- Cap leaves Adaptoid tied up behind door; Adaptoid forms a plan.
| Previous | #589 | Next |
|---|---|---|
| Tales of Suspense #83 | Reading order | Tales of Suspense #84 |
| Tales of Suspense #83 | Tales of Suspense | Tales of Suspense #84 |
