Killraven, Warrior Of The Worlds! (Featuring: the Martians!)

 

The "War Of The Worlds" feature in Amazing Adventures began in the title's eighteenth issue in May of 1973 and was published bimonthly for the entirety of its run, finally having its plug pulled near the end of 1976 after twenty-two issues--nineteen of which were scripted by writer Don McGregor, who worked with a number of artists before pairing with Craig Russell and putting their joint stamp on the book and the principal character of Killraven.

With Killraven and his band of Freemen leading the charge against the invaders and their human and once-human collaborators, it became clear almost immediately how the series was being crafted to appeal to its readers. For instance, when the guns of Killraven and his compatriot, M'Shulla, are depleted of energy (simultaneously, mind you), both men shift to a more daring approach and reach for swords and other such weapons (scooped up in a convenient museum they find themselves in) that must be wielded with a strong arm, and never look back--tools and methods reminiscent of their days in the gladiatorial pens of their youth. "Sword vs. Science Gone Mad!" declares one cover caption on its second issue (and repeated almost word for word nine issues later). It was also at that point I began seeing the Earth's Martian conquerors being pushed to the background, with the bulk of Killraven's vengeance spent on those who were imprisoning and/or experimenting on human survivors located in this complex or that.

As a result, the Martians become collectively relegated to the two-dimensional role of evil conquerors--known to feed off of humans while enjoying the spoils of conquest as they rule in tyranny. It's a rather black-and-white view of this invasion, and the invaders, that even McGregor seems to be on board with, judging by the opening page of his initial issue:

There is only a single issue in the series where McGregor and Russell would explore the Martians (or two of them, at least) in greater depth (more on that shortly); but in an effort to briefly shift the focus back to the beings who started this "war" (though at this stage it could more accurately be referred to as an "occupation"), let's collate what limited scenes are available in regard to their direct involvement, while taking a look as well at those chosen few who are unswerving loyalists to their demands.

The Doom That Awaits... Allandra!

 

It wasn't until February of 1977* that the first Dr. Strange annual would appear in stores. Such a delay may sound surprising, given the character's long-term success over the years--yet back in the day, his first series in 1968 fizzled, and he depended largely on being one of the headliners of The Defenders to become more established and consequently be given a second series in 1974. Even so, Doctor Strange went back and forth between monthly and bi-monthly publication, unable to sustain adequate sales to justify a monthly status--nor were the comings and goings of creative talent behind the scenes helping matters.

*The issue itself was publicized as the annual for 1976.

Things became equally unstable for Dr. Strange himself, whose status as Sorcerer Supreme had been stripped from him by his former teacher, the Ancient One--himself a victim of deception on the part of the Creators, a trio of sorcerers who were attempting to alter the cosmos to their will. It's during this time that we find Strange in his first annual, a port of calm in the storm of his regular mag in a story co-plotted and drawn by Craig Russell, where Strange's status as a mere Master of the Mystic Arts happens to fit in with the motivation of the story's villainess, Lectra--a sorceress who has her own deceit in play and the power to compel Strange's cooperation.

"Your Serve... er, Move, Daredevil!"

Having put together a special series on symbolic splash pages featured in Marvel's major team books as well as in Amazing Spider-Man, the PPC now moves briefly to highlighting some noteworthy efforts made in a random sampling of other titles from over the years which came to mind, some of which may ring a bell for you.

Leading us off are a number of pages from Daredevil, which I lingered on for some time considering their diversity in both style and artists and spanned a range of years from 1964 to 1971. (Perhaps even longer, but DD is monopolizing this subject as it is!) Bill Everett Jack Kirby is who we have to thank for paving the way for us (correction courtesy of Dave Plunkert--thanks, Dave!):

Joe Orlando, whose work began appearing in the industry in 1949, would follow up on the title with the next three issues (though you'll find much of his work for Marvel appearing in titles published in the mid- to late-'50s, in categories ranging from westerns, romance, war stories, sci-fi and mystery). His final work was published in 1997, a year before his death at 71.

Wally Wood, whose work Stan Lee made efforts to spotlight, makes his own SSP contribution (working off artist Bob Powell's layout) in a story from 1965 which he also scripted:

Ross Andru and Herb Trimpe unintentionally provide dueling SSPs featuring Ant-Man, with Andru providing more variety in terms of what awaits us within the story:

While John Romita and Gene Colan line up their versions of face-offs between DD and Spider-Man.  Writer Gerry Conway's "sports fan" caption turns out to be appropriate, since Mr. Colan seems to have Spidey trying to capture DD with a tennis court net.

(Maybe that second title should start off with "...And So Re-enters"?)

The mask and form of Daredevil lend themselves nicely to the SSP format, as Colan demonstrates in his other efforts with the character.

Over in Amazing Adventures, where the Black Widow is splitting the mag with the Inhumans, John Buscema appeals to the action lover with imagery suggesting that the Widow's new series is the one to watch--while Colan takes a more intriguing approach.

Later in that same title, Craig Russell is well-suited to the characters and concepts we'll find in stories adapted from H.G. Wells' War Of The Worlds.

While Colan, Gil Kane, and Jim Starlin show us what they bring to the table for Captain Marvel, old and new...

...as well as for Warlock (with Steve Leialoha working off of Starlin's layout).

Dr. Strange is also well-represented, both solo and as part of the Defenders. Here we see work by Andru, Colan, Barry Smith, and Sal Buscema.

Howard Purcell, whose work for Marvel was limited to backup stories featuring the Watcher and two Nick Fury stories in Strange Tales, turns in this splendid SSP for the Black Knight's appearance in Marvel Super-Heroes.

Finally, Andru takes us out with the opening page to Marvel Team-Up #1, which features the rare display of Spider-Man in battle while poised on his own spider's web.

(Frankly these two don't seem very interested in fighting the Sandman.)

COMING UP:

One more SSP for the road... to Transylvania, that is.

The Vengeance of the Devil Incarnate!

It's been almost six years since our PPC profile on Cyrus Black, the so-called "Devil Incarnate" who had so desperately sought to prove his mettle as a sorcerer by defeating Stephen Strange. Black's vendetta against Strange was originally set in motion by a contest which was held by the mystic known as Watoomb, who was retiring and wished to pass on his wand (i.e., the Wand of Watoomb) to a deserving adept. Both Strange and Black were contenders for the object, with each taking one-half of the wand and using it in battle against the other; yet while Strange prevailed that day, Black's half of the wand was later stolen by the sorcerer Xandu, leaving Strange with only his own half of it.

Demoralized but furious, Black sought to avenge his loss against Strange--a plan facilitated by Nightmare, who granted Black the power to make his dreams a reality. But when Black launched his attack, Strange's friends, the Defenders, were there to aid him, and Black once more met defeat when he realized his invincibility was only imagined.

So what's Black been up to since then? Simmering, for sure--still hungering for revenge, almost certainly. Retreating to Nightmare's dimension of dreams, Black was mentored by his host and, under his tutelage, increased his sorcerous knowledge and power until he progressed to the point when, finally, he was ready to carry out Strange's demise. Which brings us to April of 1979, and a story dedicated to Cyrus Black's long-awaited triumph (or so he expects).

To take Strange by surprise and arrange for his transport to Nightmare's dimension, Black once more made use of his rodent familiar, Nebuchadnezzar, to slip past Strange's defenses and abduct the magician. Obviously, Strange could stand to review the spells protecting his sanctum, if demon-rodents can just scurry in and out at will--but perhaps equally alarming from a typical home-dweller standpoint is that, for such a large structure in New York City, Strange's pest control appears to be nonexistent.

Or, put another way in light of Strange's predicament--"Rats!"

The Art Of The War

Following up on a previous post that explored the launch issue of the Amazing Adventures series "War Of The Worlds" from 1973, it was evident that the acclaimed yet troubled series would be off to a shaky start, with its writer and artist moving on to other commitments soon after the book's second issue saw print--and only a semblance of direction for moving forward provided by its creator, Roy Thomas, the series now waiting for whoever would pick up its reins. After Marv Wolfman stepped in to script the third issue, the writing position, at least, was secured when Don McGregor joined the book for what would be the entirety of its run, while pulling double duty with the "Panther's Rage" storyline in Jungle Action.

But who to pencil and ink the series from this point? We know that artist Craig Russell would come aboard eventually (with the tenth issue) to add his talents to McGregor's and provide the series with the distinction it still carries to this day; in the meantime, the upside to the book's artistic direction being in flux is that readers were treated to a succession of different hands that brought their interpretations to the concept and the characters. That would be, in order of appearance, Herb Trimpe, Rich Buckler, and Gene Colan, with a number of inkers that included Frank Giacoia, Klaus Janson, and Frank Chiarmonte. Below are brief samplings of their contributions to WOTW, though you'll certainly want to enjoy their respective issues in their entirety.

The God Killer!

Things didn't look hopeful for the Black Panther following his rematch with Erik Killmonger, which saw him regain consciousness in the harsh sub-frozen mountain region where he'd tracked his ruthless foe only to be set upon by a pack of wolves, an encounter which he barely escaped with his life. With his uniform ripped and leaving parts of his flesh exposed to the elements, and far from any safe haven, that life seemed in danger of not surviving the night--so it's surprising indeed to open the issue and find that the Panther not only lives, but has stalked his way back to Resurrection Altar, the cavern where another of Killmonger's subordinates, the mysterious Sombre, exposes others to rays which transform them into something more (or, in some cases, less) than human.

As "Panther's Rage" continues in Part 8, the Panther is ready for Round Two with Killmonger--but in his foe's absence, he'll have to settle for those who aided Killmonger in abandoning him to the wolves, men who will learn that even this wounded and weather-beaten king can still strike back.

Unlike Tayete and Kazibe, the fretful lackeys of Killmonger who reluctantly accompanied T'Challa to this harsh clime, these men are armed and dangerous. For himself, the Panther can only lay claim to the latter, but those he struggles with find it's enough; and as that struggle plays out, we have a few questions answered which lingered over the events of Part 7, points that address not only how the Panther managed to survive (by taking a leaf from Han Solo's book, no less), but also why Resurrection Altar hasn't proven to be more of a boon for Killmonger's plans.

Obviously the tracks which T'Challa follows weren't left by Killmonger--but he follows them impulsively nonetheless, towards a destination that will bring him face-to-face with certain myths of his people, "gods" which will unfortunately take deadly, living form.

The Plan and the Peril!

In the first meeting between Iron Man and the man known as Whiplash, Iron Man was for all intents and purposes little more than a living target--his power nearly depleted from an earlier battle and unable to make use of his strength or his weapons. Nor was his armor proving resilient enough to stand up to his foe's steel-rending whip. Iron Man only survived that meeting by rerouting power reserved for his injured heart, in one desperate strike which left him as incapacitated as Whiplash.

Since then, Whiplash has moved on from his association with the criminal organization known as the Maggia, but has meticulously been planning his revenge against Iron Man right under the nose of Tony Stark--positioning himself in Stark Industries' Cincinnati plant and waiting for the moment when the paths of both himself and Iron Man would cross. That moment arrives when Stark and his executive assistant, Pepper Potts, arrive for an inspection of a project under development by the plant's manager, Vicki Snow, as well as the plant's head of Research, Mark Scott (a/k/a Mark Scarlotti)--a man we know better as Whiplash himself.

It seems a lot of trouble and effort for Whiplash to go through in order to put in place this revenge plot of his. For one thing, he didn't do too badly against Iron Man in their last meeting, with the Avenger virtually at his mercy; and after Whiplash regained consciousness following Iron Man's desperate attack, it was the Maggia's leader, the Big M, who prevented him from finishing Iron Man then and there. It would seem that a man like Scott would have better things to do than fume about that outcome and be so consumed with thoughts of revenge. There's also one other oddity along these lines in writer Mike Friedrich's story, which we'll get to in a moment.

For now, we at least have a decent battle to look forward to between Whiplash and Iron Man, since it would be absurd to once again find Iron Man too debilitated to put up a fight. That means that Whiplash will have to have some sort of defense against Iron Man's powers other than a single weapon, since he has no strength or invulnerability to speak of. As we'll see, Friedrich will give him a hand in that respect (or in this case, two); but it appears he's also made Whiplash quite the electronics expert since his last appearance, which means he'll have a few surprises for Iron Man. Of course, his whip remains formidable, and there's no disputing the man's skill.