Giant-Size July: Marvel Two-In-One Annual 2

Marvel Two-In-One Annual #2 (1977)
"Death Watch!"
Jim Starlin-Starlin/Josef Rubenstein

Doug:  It's sad to see this one go, folks!  After the introduction of Thanos way back in Iron Man #55 (February 1973), Jim Starlin would conclude what became one of the true epics in all of comic book history with the publication of Marvel Two-In-One Annual #2.  Four years, and no decompression in sight!  Let's not waste any time, but instead enjoy the master as he puts the final stamp on his magnum opus.

Doug:  Oddly enough, we begin with Peter Parker, the spectacular Spider-Man lost in a dream state.  I'll say right from the top, I felt this story was better suited to have appeared in Spidey's own Marvel Team-Up Annual (in case you're wondering, there was no 1977 Annual for that mag.  Hmmph).  I say that because I felt that Spider-Man was really the headliner in this story, as opposed to its proprietor, Benjamin Grimm.  But both heroes get a moment or two in the sun along the way, as do the Avengers and Starlin's cosmic cast.  So Parker is having visions of the space opera that took place in Avengers Annual #7.  We get a nice 2-page recap of that chapter's events, and then discover that it is Moondragon reaching out to Spider-Man in distress.  We then get some not-previously-seen material, of Thanos and his thralls (man, did Starlin overuse and abuse that word over these last two stories!) defeating and capturing the Avengers.  Even the heavyweights -- Thor, Iron Man, and Captain Mar-Vell -- fall.  The corpse of Adam Warlock was then brought before the power-crazed Titan, and Warlock's soul gem was removed from his cold forehead.  Thanos intended to use it as a love offering for his prospective mistress, Death.

Karen: I agree, Spidey does seem to be more the focus than Ben, but I think they were just trying to find a place to finish telling Warlock and Thanos' story, so it got plopped into MTIO. Of course if this were done today, it would be a 12-part series with tie-ins to every book in the line. In retrospect you'd think Moondragon would reach out to someone like Dr. Strange, wouldn't you? But it just wouldn't be the same story.

Doug:  Oh, yes -- "Atlantis Attacks" or some such summer "epic".  Ugh...  And as I've said, I'm no Dr. Strange expert, but I'm thinking with as powerful as he's sometimes portrayed, this whole thing could have been over sooner than later.

Doug:  Spidey wakes with his heart pounding, questioning everything that had just gone before.  Somehow he knows it was real, and knowing that with great power must also come great responsibility, sets out to find allies for what he knows could be a death-mission.  Somewhere in the fabric of space/time, Order and Chaos discuss how Thanos must be defeated.  They know that Spider-Man will be a champion, and that he will ally himself with the Thing -- and they hope that their union will turn the tide.  Sure enough, Spidey arrives at the Baxter Building and easily gets through the recently-updated security systems.  In one of those scenes that we've witnessed before, but is always priceless, Ben's curled up with a stogie and a scary book.  Spider-Man, of course sensing the moment in spite of the gravity of the situation, lightly taps Benji on top of his noggin, causing him to inhale his entire cigar and choke on it.  Great stuff!  After things settle down over a couple of cups of coffee, Spidey relates his dream to Ben.  Ben really doesn't question it, and instead offers an experimental space shuttle that Reed's been working on.  The two heroes blast off, not really knowing where they are going or what they are looking for.

Karen: That's a pretty good scene. Ben's reading Salem's Lot by Stephen King, which I can say is a pretty terrific book (and I don't even consider myself a King fan). But what's up with the little white cat padding around near his feet? That seemed odd. In any case, it was a good laugh. I will say that I didn't think Starlin quite had Ben's voice -he just sounded a little off, a little stiff maybe. But not enough to ruin it for me. 

Doug:  Even though Spidey had no coordinates for Thanos' ship, it really wasn't too hard to find -- the thing is huge!  Our guys find themselves caught in a tractor beam, and Ben warns the Webslinger that once docked, there's going to need to be some butt-kicking administered -- you know, Ben has experience with that sort of thing.  Indeed, clobberin' time does commence.  Two pages later, Thanos has seen enough and eliminates gravity in the chamber where the battle is taking place.  Totally thrown off his game, the Thing is put down with a blast, as is Spider-Man.  Back in space/time, Order and Chaos monitor the events -- although Spider-Man and the Thing are necessary for what will transpire, they are merely catalysts for bringing forth the true champion:  Adam Warlock.  Say what?

Karen: That was a nice touch, the old veteran of cosmic adventures calmly explaining what's going to go down next. Even after seeing that gigantic spaceship, Ben is not phased. Well  until he hears Thanos' voice, and realizes they're in the deep doo-doo. The interludes with Chaos and Order let us know that something of great magnitude is happening here. I thought it made sense that both Order and Chaos would represent life - life is full of chaos, after all, and chaos would require life and activity, so it would be an enemy of death and entropy. Comic book metaphysics...probably not worth thinking about too much really.

Doug:  We journey into the soul gem, Jim Starlin's version of Heaven or Paradise.  As we saw at the end of Avengers Annual #7, Adam Warlock now inhabits this space of peace alongside his friends Pip the Troll and Gamora, as well as even several former enemies.  It is a true respite from any and all suffering.  Adam says to his friends "I pray it can last."  Yeah...  Back on Thanos' mother ship, the Thing and Spidey awaken to find themselves at the feet of Earth's Mightiest Heroes, all contained in a stasis field.  Thanos is at a control room, but materializes in between our heroes at Ben's provocation.  But what he really wanted to do was gloat over his possession of Warlock's soul gem, and how he will use it to destroy our sun.  Ben gasps, wanting an explanation.  Starlin uses the next half-page to give the reader more backstory on Thanos' ill-fated love affair with Death.  As he concludes, Ben's had enough -- he delivers, with gusto, his "world-famous Knuckle Knock-Out formula!"

Karen: It's sort of easy to forget that Thanos, despite his menacing appearance and power, is really just a pathetic guy trying to impress the woman he loves. Of course, that woman is the personification of Death. But still...He's no Dr. Doom, trying to conquer and gain power for the sake of personal aggrandizement and to control others. He's no Magneto, with a cause he fervently believes in. He's not even a Galactus, who transcends good and evil. He's just a madman in love.

Doug:  I'll say this for Starlin and the other creators who touched on Thanos over the years of the Bronze Age -- they never did stray from the intent you state:  that he's a guy just trying to get the right bouquet for his lady-friend!

Doug:   For his trouble, Ben is laid out with a single blow.  He's really lucky Thanos didn't kill him, as he had Warlock.  Thanos challenges Spider-Man, who chooses the better part of valor and flees.  What did you think about this?  I thought it was a nice piece of Peter Parker writing -- Spidey gives off the lovable loser, but staunch hero vibe all at the same time.  He knew he couldn't do anything right there and then -- Peter's a scientist, and a chance to collect his wits and analyze the situation was what he needed.  So he fled.  Thanos, not liking it one bit, orders his menagerie of aliens after the Webhead.  Spidey has to engage a few of them, but is finally able to find a place to hide out for a few moments.  And then he takes matters into his own hands -- he launches himself right into a weak point on the contraption containing the Avengers -- and all hell (and the team) breaks loose!

Karen: My take on this, both when I first read it and now, 36 years later, is that Spidey freaked out and ran! He had a momentary panic attack when faced with a threat way beyond anything he'd ever had to deal with, and just flat out ran! The fact that he was thinking to himself about how could he get back to Earth really makes me believe that for a few moments at least, he was planning on splitting. But after he's had a chance to sort of mentally regroup, he realizes he has to go do something. Figuring that only Thor can stand up to Thanos he knows that freeing him is his best plan. And that's why he's a hero. Spidey doesn't give up, and even sacrifices his body to free the Avengers.

Doug:  I can see your point.  To be honest, I like your take -- it's very humanistic.  Even with Spider-powers, this is a scene pretty far removed from fighting the Vulture or the Molten Man!

Doug:  Jim Starlin and Joe Rubenstein then treat us to five pages of sheer mayhem, as Thanos' army descends on the chamber to try to clean up the mess.  The Avengers are fully-engaged, and we get several great shots of Thor and the Thing tag-teaming on the Titan himself.  I'll be really curious to see how this plays out in Avengers 2 with the Hulk standing in for the Thing -- now that is going to be some real fun, particularly with the ramped-up film version of ol' Jade Jaws!  And what of Spidey?  He's numb from the jolt he received when jumping onto the machine, and as he clears his head, he has an inkling that there's something he's about to do (what?) and it's going to be pivotal (better move, then!).  In space, Order taps into Warlock's mind, preparing him for what will come next.  Back on Thanos' ship, Spider-Man now knows that he must get to the soul gem.  His mind begins to go haywire -- no spider-sense, really no vision.  He busts through some of Thanos' goons, and then has to resort to flailing his arms about in an effort to dislodge the gem from its container.  He's successful, as the gem hits the floor and an explosion goes off -- releasing a golden, flaming hero calling himself "the Ultimate Avenger".  We know who he is -- and so does Thanos!!

Karen: I wish my comic wasn't so muddy looking. The full page shot with Ben trying to restrain Thanos while Thor is about to strike the mad Titan with Mjolnir is pretty cool. I think I would have preferred to see a less cluttered page but it's still a nice shot.  The three panel sequence that follows is even better. (This would make a really cool diorama (triorama?).

Doug:  While I did not purchase any of the Marvel Legends dioramas (everyone versus Galactus, the Hulk vs. the Thing, and the cover of Fantastic Four #1), I would agree that this image would be a worthy contender to have been immortalized in resin.  In regard to the muddy look, I have a ton of comics that had white back covers that are all dirtied up from the pre-bag era of my collecting.  But additionally, I also have many, many books from the Bronze Age that have that muddy look from the poor paper quality and printing processes.  It is frustrating.  While I don't always like the coloring on trade paperbacks, at least it's clear.

Doug:  The BIG FINISH is sort of funny; almost anticlimactic.  Adam Warlock ends Thanos' life as quickly as Thanos had ended Warlock's earlier.  With but one touch, Thanos is transformed into a statue of solid granite.  A monument to his wild obsession with conquest and destruction as a means to love Death.  The next page, the penultimate of the epic, needs to speak for itself, and appears below.

Karen: Adam returns as "the ultimate avenger". Well everyone's an Avenger nowadays...I kid, I kid. With the golden coloring and the flames, I thought immediately of an angel, and not the happy, harp-playing kind. I thought it was interesting that he tells Thanos he had to return while he remained a threat to "my universe!" I wonder what Starlin's intent was there? Of course Warlock had served as a Christ stand-in on Counter-Earth. Had his death and life in the soul gem allowed him to ascend to a higher level of consciousness? As an aside, I wonder if anyone has done a story that went back to Counter-Earth and showed people worshiping Warlock all these years after his death and resurrection? Or is that potato still too hot?

Karen: Captain Marvel's eulogy was well-said, and ironic, since he too would be dead in a short time -and killed by the same man! At least his life was somewhat happier than Warlock's.

Doug:  As we close this one out, I just want to again say "thanks" to Karen for getting these issues on the docket.  What a wild ride!  I'm really glad I read all of these, and as I said earlier now need to get into some of the Warlock stories.  Jim Starlin was quite a talented writer in these yarns.  Just a small quibble on the art in today's issue.  While I know that this issue was created concurrently with last week's fare, I would just note that I thought the overall art performance was better in Avengers Annual #7 than here.  Given that it's the same team, I just have to write that off to the burden of the deadlines.  But hey -- Jim Starlin and Joe Rubenstein operating at 85-90% efficiency beats a whole lot of other people, for sure!

Karen: I'm really glad you enjoyed them, Doug! I think they are a true Bronze Age epic. I do agree with you about the art in this issue -it does seem not quite as polished as the Avengers Annual. My guess is it got rushed. But as you say, it's still better than most! Now that I have seen the super clean scans from that trade paperback, I'm going right over to Amazon to buy it. It makes my comics look like they've been dragged through the mud!

Giant-Size July: Avengers Annual 7

Avengers Annual #7 (1977)
"The Final Threat"
Jim Starlin-Starlin/Josef Rubenstein

Doug:  You might have noticed that we originally had this scheduled for later in the month, and of course followed by the story's conclusion in Marvel Two-In-One Annual #2.  After some discussion at one of our editorial meetings, we decided to move these up as a fitting conclusion to the month-long reviews of Thanos and all of his evil doings.  We hope you'll indulge another two weeks of cosmic mayhem, although we think those of you preferring your heroes more grounded will enjoy the inclusion of the Avengers, Spider-Man, and the Thing in Jim Starlin's conclusionary tale.  Among Bronze Age aficionados, this two-parter is one of the highlights of the era.  Maybe it's not qualified to be alongside Amazing Spider-Man #'s 121-122, but it certainly has it boosters, and justifiably so.

Karen: It's rather bizarre that these two books ever saw print in the first place, as Starlin had essentially left Marvel at this point. Only through a serendipitous meeting with then Marvel editor Archie Goodwin did the assignment to work on this annual, and then the Marvel Two-In-One Annual, come to be. For anyone out there who might want to fill in some gaps prior to reading this issue, you can go back to my review of Warlock #11, done as part of the "Doug and Karen's favorite's" series (why aren't we doing more of those?).

Doug:  I don't know... there's not a good reason.  I'll see what I can do.  First one off the top of my head -- be on the look-out for a review of Avengers #56.  How's that?

Doug:   We open on a decimated world, where Adam Warlock has come to investigate what has gone before.  He expects nothing but death, but is surprised to find Gamora, once-faithful servant of Thanos, the mad Titan who had been a god when he commanded the power of the cosmic cube.  Gamora tells Adam of Thanos' plan for stellar genocide, and Warlock's blood begins to boil.  Saying she will accompany him, Adam Warlock quite emphatically pledges to find and destroy Thanos.  Cut to Earth, where Earth's Mightiest Heroes are in the Mansion kibitzing.  It's a pretty powerful assemblage, with the Big Three, the Beast, and the Vision and the Scarlet Witch.  Iron Man stands at a window brooding, and Wanda encourages the Vision to check on him.  Inquiring, the synthezoid approaches.  Iron Man tells him that he felt drawn to the Mansion this night, and that he could not shake a feeling of impending danger.  Suddenly, a window opens (!) and in steps Captain Marvel and Moondragon.  Moondragon, in her usual haughty way, tells that she and Mar-Vell felt drawn also to the Mansion, and that her sense is that only a gathering of eagles can stave off the coming catastrophe.  She starts, aware of the destruction of a star some distance away, laid waste by Thanos' starship.  Suddenly a stranger (to some) arrives to the Mansion -- Adam Warlock.  In a great nod to the Silver Age, the God of Thunder calls Warlock by the name "Him"; Warlock assures Thor that he's come as an ally.

Karen: Let's get this out of the way: I like this pairing of Starlin and Rubinstein perhaps the best of all the art teams we've seen -the Starlin -Janson team is pretty close. The art here in these opening pages is just majestic. It screams 'epic.' I also enjoyed the little head shots running down the side of the splash page -that was a fun touch. Warlock's assimilation of Gamora's soul as she lay dying was touching for those of us who had followed his series. She had been the dupe of Thanos, a deadly warrior but unaware of her master's larger schemes. Although there had never been a romantic relationship between her and Warlock, they had at least come to respect one another and perhaps something might have developed, given time, but given the overall tragic arc of  his life that never happened. Warlock's acceptance of his role as Thanos' mortal enemy is almost an acceptance of defeat, or at least of his fate. But after the events of issue #11, he knows his time is limited. Might as well do the best he can with it. I thought it was funny that Wanda suggested Vision should speak to the brooding Iron Man, since they're so similar; boy, the Downey portrayal in the films really is a far cry from the comics version! The gathering of the "eagles" as Moondragon calls them is exciting and I got a laugh out of how Warlock's sudden entrance startles the skeptical Beast.

Doug:  Warlock recaps much of the Thanos narrative (as we've been telling you, contained in the incredible tpb The Avengers vs. Thanos -- get it!), including the stories we reviewed in June.  Thanos was emotionally devastated when Death rejected him after his defeat at the hands of Captain Marvel (see Captain Marvel #33), and began a universal search for that which might please her.  He determined that he would possess the six soul gems -- united they would return him to the power levels he possessed when he had mastered the cosmic cube.  He obtained five of the gems -- through theft, combat, guile, and appropriation.  The sixth and final gem was that of Adam Warlock, and in a previous adventure Thanos had been able to siphon power from the gem.  He had then crafted a synthetic gem of epic proportions into which he channeled the energy of the six gems.  Warlock then explained that Thanos had determined what his love offering to Death would be.  Thanos would destroy every star in the sky.

Karen: I think I'm going to have to buy that book. Otherwise I'll keep mangling my comics. The recap is interesting to read, having just come off our reviews. Seeing Thanos' acquisition of the soul (not infinity, not yet) gems was intriguing. I like the fact that Warlock explains that he learned all of this from absorbing Gamora's soul, and hence, her memories. Thanos' obsession with the personification of death is nearly as sad as Drax's uncontrollable obsession with destroying Thanos. They can't help themselves (atlhough in Drax's case, he's been programmed to feel that way).

Doug:  A small craft lighted on Thanos command ship, Sanctuary II.  Emerging through an airlock came Pip the Troll, friend of Adam Warlock and acquaintance (reluctantly) of Thanos.  Thinking the vessel deserted, Pip spoke aloud.  Just as he was about to give his true feelings of the Titan, who should emerge from the shadows but Thanos himself? -- and in a less than playful mood.  Grabbing the troll, Thanos says they are no longer on friendly terms.  Back on Earth, Avengers Mansion gets a mayday call from StarCore.  Interstellar sensors have picked up an invasion force even larger than that of the Skrull armada of a few years prior.  The Avengers don't balk -- they know it's up to them.  Jim Starlin gives us a great look inside the heads of those who have been fighting this protracted war with Thanos -- Moondragon, Iron Man, Captain Marvel.  We also sense the thoughts of our other heroes -- Thor, the Vision, Cap, the Beast, and the Scarlet Witch.  Each ponders their mission, Thanos, and Adam Warlock and his role in this whole affair.  It's a very well done two pages.  And as long as we're tossing kudos, I have to say that this is some of Starlin's best art in this entire saga.  It's really just about perfect -- camera angles, depth of the characters, facial expressions, backgrounds, the whole enchilada.  I couldn't state how much of an influence Joe Rubenstein has on the doings, but the synergy between penciler and inker is par excellence.

Karen: This time it's me having to apologize for not reading ahead -- but hey, I think we can both praise the art on this book, it's that good! 

Doug:  You are certainly forgiven!  And yes, we could probably go on and on about the art.  I had a devil of  a time choosing images for our art samples.  I easily could have scanned the entire story!  However, readers beware -- I do make a comment in next week's post comparing the art in Marvel Two-In-One Annual #2 to today's showing.  We'll see what you think then.

Karen:  I thought that Pip's encounter with Thanos was terribly menacing - as a reader, you feel for the poor troll. I also enjoyed the sequences inside each hero's head -and the unique framing Starlin did around the panels of both Moondragon and Iron Man. He has a good take on all of their voices. Everyone sounds different, and if you just heard the words without the pictures, you'd have a good chance to figure out who was speaking based n the speech patterns.

Doug:  As the team rockets along, Cap moves to the front, ordering everyone on alert -- the fleet should be almost in view.  And what a view, as thousands of space vehicles suddenly appear, with Thanos' starship in the middle.  Cap immediately tells Thor and Iron Man to get after an interference mission so the rest of the team can reach the command vessel.  And run interference do they ever!  The God of Thunder is relentless in his attack, destroying ship after ship.  Iron Man moves just a bit slower, but no less impressively.  Even when Thor takes a counter-attack, he channels the energy back out as lightning; the scene is incredible!  The Avengers' craft is able to land on top of Thanos' ship, but finds no place to actually dock.  No trouble, as Cap asks Mar-Vell if he can breach the hull.  He does so with a photon blast, and the Avengers stream onto the mother ship.  It's a battle royale over the next four pages as the team is contested by all sorts of inter-galactic goonies.

Karen: That's one heck of a fleet. It seems impossibly large, and the captions tell us that the Avengers recognize that their chances of returning from this mission alive are pretty much zero. But being heroes, they strive on. They may still be able to take down Thanos' ship itself. I love seeing Cap taking command and giving orders -it just feels right. The panels with Thor doing his godly thing are awesome -pure power. Iron Man is no slouch either. I really love seeing this space action from our Avenging crew! The rest of our gang, dropping in on Thanos' main ship, really show why they are such an elite team. It's also fun seeing the many bizarre aliens that Starlin throws against them. I got a chuckle out of the scene where the gigantic alien with the see-thru  dome head yells at the Beast in English and he says, stunned, "Lord, this one can talk!"

Doug:  Starlin used a great roster for this story.  Hey, if you're going to go up against a foe with the power of a god, then you'd better have all of the heavy hitters on deck!

Doug:  The team accomplishes the mission of getting Moondragon to the ship's controls so that she can recalibrate everything and turn Thanos' weapons against the attacking star cruisers.  Mar-Vell wipes out a bunch of baddies, and then heads for a suspicious door where he thinks the end game might commence.  As he approaches, though, he knows that Thanos has played them for fools once again; this has been too easy.  Blowing through the door, Mar-Vell finds Adam Warlock on his knees in front of Pip the Troll.  In a scene very reminiscent of Taylor's reuniting with Landon, Warlock has discovered that Pip has been mind-wiped -- he is effectively a vegetable.  Warlock takes Pip's soul into his own soul gem, and then tells Mar-Vell that he knows where Thanos is hiding.  The two champions exit near the speed of thought, and head for the far side of the sun.  There, they find Thanos' real command ship, and see that it readies for the destruction of Sol, and its solar system.


Karen: I hadn't thought of that comparison to Planet of the Apes, but it works. You can truly feel Warlock's pain here, and more than that, the sense that he feels some responsibility for what has happened. Thanos' leaving Pip alive yet brain dead is far worse than killing him.Here again though, as Warlock remarks, we see Thanos planting seeds of his own destruction, for by absorbing Pip's soul, Warlock also learns of the location of the real command ship.

Doug:  Mar-Vell rockets himself into the blast cannon, dislodging the huge gem.  Thanos really pays him no heed, merely shrugging it off with a bit of surprise.  He'd expected Warlock, not Mar-Vell.  Careful what you wish for.  As Thanos turns he is struck by Warlock.  It's a short fight, as Thanos kills Adam Warlock with one punch and one energy blast.  Dead.  Thanos almost shows a sign of respect for Warlock as he muses to himself.  But then the Avengers enter, and it's Thor who takes the lead.  But the Odinson doesn't get the match he'd craved earlier, as Iron Man destroys the giant soul gem.  Thanos almost cries over it like a baby, and then blinks out.  In another room, Mar-Vell regains consciousness to see one Adam Warlock stand over another.  He who stands speaks with a voice that transcends time; he who lays speaks of human foibles -- time, love, pain.  The fallen remarks to the strong that he knows that his soul will now be taken; the Magus will never again appear.  The Avengers enter and ask what has transpired; Captain Marvel is speechless.

Karen: Readers of Warlock knew that the scene you've described was coming, someday, although I suppose we'd hoped it was a long way off, perhaps even something that might never come to be, since the title had been cancelled. But here it was. Warlock's death was not a heroic one but rather one of futility, like much of his life. That scene, and especially its dialog, have stuck with me ever since I first read it. "My life has been a failure. I welcome its end." That's heady stuff for a comic from that era. Captain Marvel's reaction was handled well. As an aside, it was very cool to see Starlin's two cosmic crusaders together for the only time.

Doug:  The last two pages are really done well.  We get the contemporary juxtaposed with the spiritual retirement of Adam Warlock.  The Avengers plot their next move, and Iron Man asks what they should do with Warlock's body.  Mar-Vell tells them nothing -- there is nothing to do, as Adam Warlock is now at peace.  And we see Warlock arise, to be greeted by Gamora and Pip.  Pip explains that they are in a place where there is no pain, where all are well.  They have come home, to the soul gem (Heaven?) and now reside with all of their fallen comrades, in the peace of a state of love.  But somewhere out in the tangible universe, Thanos lurks...