Given the last couple of posts in my Silver Age reread were mostly critical of Marvel’s 1967 output, it seemed worth mentioning that it’s not a slog to read them. Even when the creators are recycling stuff they’ve already done better, the books are still entertaining. And the art is usually amazing, even when the stories are not.
As I mentioned in Monday’s post, Steve Rogers, having given up his other identity, walks the decision back much too easily. However the story up to that point, involving multiple people cosplaying Captain America (he’s retired, why should he object?) and the underworld trying to kill them, is fun. And it does have this spectacular scene when Steve has to save one of his imitators from falling to their death.
My head says this is just as ridiculous as when Cap survived the Super-Adaptoid dropping him from a mile in the air but Jack Kirby’s art makes me believe it.
Thor improves once the Ringmaster and his crew abandon the thunder god (see Monday’s post for details) and Loki returns. It’s still recycling the “Odin has a hissy-fit, Loki takes advantage” Lee and Kirby have already done a half-dozen times but again, Kirby’s art makes it look more than that. For example Loki in limbo here.
Meanwhile, over at Strange Tales #163, Jim Steranko’s plot — AIM’s invented a doomsday device, the Yellow Claw’s going to steal it, SHIELD’s going to stop him — feels more complicated than necessary (and after the Cosmic Cube and Modok, AIM should realize creating ultimate weapons is never going to work out for them). However it has the sequence where Nick battles an octopus—
— and then the showdown with the Yellow Claw, which does not go well for Fury.
Not bad at all.
#SFWApro. Nick Fury art by James Steranko, all else by Kirby.
