Of Green Hair, Purple Pants, and Concentric Circles

Incredible Hulk #150 (April 1972)
"Cry Hulk, Cry Havok!"
Archie Goodwin-Herb Trimpe/John Severin

Doug: When Karen and I reviewed the first appearance of the Beast this past Monday, I mentioned that I was reading from the X-Men Marvel Masterworks, volume 7. Included in that tome is Incredible Hulk #150, containing an appearance by Alex Summers and Lorna Dane, known in the longjohn world as Havok and Polaris. I appreciate that Marvel has taken care in the Masterworks and Essentials to sometimes add in books that are not in the main series the volume is dedicated to. Many owners of the dvd-roms have long lamented the exclusion of Giant-Size issues and crossovers from those otherwise fine collections.

Karen: I'm working from a genuine, 1972 copy! And yes, it has that "old comic" smell!

Doug: Ah, yes -- a little newsprint mustiness! I just get ink when I open one of these Masterworks... Well, if this is the Hulk's book, then you know we have to begin with the Jade Giant on the run from some army-types. And so, we find our hero hiding from soldiers led by none other than General "Thunderbolt" Ross. In the bowels of a Project Greenskin base, Hulk had battled the Inheritor the previous issue. Now he steps out into plain view and is immediately hit with nerve gas. The antagonists don gas masks, and Hulk is able to grab one before he passes out. Now stable, he fights his way to Ross. Grabbing his nemesis, the Hulk decides it would be better to let him go; using the most powerful legs on Earth (and the hardest head), Hulk jumps up and out of the base.

Karen: First off, Trimpe's Hulk never looked so good as when John Severin inked him. Secondly, this scene points out how much more powerful Hulk became over the years. I doubt that any writer in the last ten years would even imagine that gas could affect the Hulk. The Hulk is also much more man-sized here; bigger than a normal man but certainly not as huge as he would become.

Doug: I think you can chalk that up to modern creators without much of an appreciation of the history of our beloved characters -- today it's all for show, for effect.

Doug: Once free, Hulk rests on a large plateau where his mind drifts back to Jarella. He loved that pretty green maiden in a sub-atomic world and misses her now. As he muses the Air Force has located him and brings a little shock and awe his way. If you think back to the first Hulk film, the attack scene in the desert is very reminiscent of this scene. As Hulk scrambles against both air and ground assaults, the attack is suddenly squelched by an order for Ross to appear at a Congressional hearing in Washington. With the Hulk in their sites, the mission is abandoned.

Karen: The scene on the mesa was very beautiful. I also thought of the first Hulk film when reading the battle scene. But then the Hulk did spend a lot of the time in the desert fighting the army. I was a wee bit surprised that Ross backed off so readily.

Doug: We then look in on Glen Talbot and Betty Ross, speeding along in a jeep trailing the Hulk. Suddenly the Hulk takes off, bounding quickly across the sands. We then get a nice camera angle on a convertible being run down by a biker gang. Hulk lands right in the middle of the motorcycles, scattering bikes and riders everywhere. But he quickly realizes that the car is still moving and being hotly pursued. Hulk mutters to himself that he must save the girl driving; he must save Jarella, for you see -- our driver has green locks. Hulk makes another leap, but when he lands he finds motorcycles littering the landscape and the car open and unoccupied. He picks up one of the riders, but all the guy can say is that the girl pointed her hands at them and caused all the destruction.

Karen: The panel where the Hulk comes crashing down on the biker gang is just full of energy; I really like it. I think it is interesting that the Hulk never really seems out of control or furious -he's driven but still surprisingly calm.

Doug: We then see our damsel in distress up close, and long-time X-fans should have immediately recognized her as Lorna Dane, one-time object of Bobby Drake's infatuation and soon-to-be girl of one Alex Summers. Speaking of, as Lorna walks toward a house the last biker suddenly revs it up over a dune. He's picked right out of the air by a powerful blast -- but not from Lorna! It's Alex, aka Havok! Lorna runs to him and they greet each other. It's pretty obvious that our green-tressed lady was on her way to find Mr. Summers; he's happy to see her. But when he finds that she's come to recruit him back into the X-Men, he's less than thrilled.

Karen: Lorna, the mistress of magnetism, makes some remarks about how she feels so weak. "Each time I over-extend my magnetic powers, it's always the same!" She's got the same disease that the Scarlet Witch, Marvel Girl, and the Invisible Girl all had back in the 60s and early 70s - the inability to use her powers more than once in a fight scene! It's a bit maddening how all of these so-called heroines are pretty much useless. I doubt Magneto would have had any trouble with those bikers.

Doug: As they reflect on the tussle between Bobby and Alex over Lorna, Alex remarks that his power is still his worst enemy, and that he's a true danger to anyone around him. Enter the Hulk. Lorna, upset at Alex's stubbornness, fled crying just as ol' purple pants sets down. Alex, sensing this isn't headed in a positive direction, sprints into his hut and emerges seconds later in costume, the concentric circles that limit his atomic powers much more important than sartorial splendor. Hulk, in the meantime, has grabbed Lorna and is doing his best King Kong impression. But once at the top, he gets his first good look at the girl he now knows is not Jarella. Now believing he's been tricked, Hulk's anger is interrupted by the sound of an approaching jeep -- bearing Glen and Betty.

Karen: You gotta love how Alex runs into his little adobe shack to change into his costume -and then notes that while he did that, the Hulk took off with Lorna! I was thinking that the way Hulk was holding Lorna by the arms -surely they'd be pulverized?!

Doug: The Havok costume is one of my all-time favorites. I just love it. Neal Adams outdid himself on that one.

Doug: Everything is also interrupted by a blast from the ground. It would seem that Havok wants his girl let down gently. What he gets is about a half ton of gamma-irradiated rage jumping on him. And, this is where it gets weird. We know Havok hadn't had too many appearance prior to this, so perhaps his powers were undefined. But telekinetic-like prowess? Havok stops the Hulk's descent and keeps him aloft, lowering him ever so gently. Hulk's not really interested in rationalizing this mess, and strikes Havok. Grabbing his arm, Hulk gets a faceful of energy from Alex's other hand. Yeah, not a good idea. Hulk then uproots a huge chunk of the plateau atop which still sits Lorna. He squats with it over his head, looking a lot like Atlas. Alex knows that he's got to do something incredible (no pun intended) to right this. I said above this is weird -- Alex focuses his powers into the thinnest beam, aiming it right at Hulk's forehead. As the pain becomes acute, Havok coaxes the Hulk to put the rock down. He then envelopes Lorna in energy and lowers her to the ground.

Karen: Everything about this sequence was weird. The Hulk seems far stronger than I recall, but it's Havok's bizarre use of his powers that really throws me, especially levitating Lorna! How would that be any different from Cyclops pulling that stunt? Of course, she should be blown to bits. But maybe Archie Goodwin just didn't have a handle on his powers. Or -I guess he was trying to re-define them. But yeah, it seems odd. But the big panel with Hulk ripping the mountain up was pretty sweet!

Doug: As Lorna and Alex walk away, the Hulk changes back to Bruce Banner, resting under the very mountain he'd just moved. The jeep pulls up, and Betty runs to Bruce, much to the chagrin of Glen Talbot. Betty is moved to tears, however, when Bruce whispers into her ear and says, "Jarella... my love". You see, Glen knows all about that adventure, and he's now right there to pick up the pieces. As they say, to be continued!

Karen: Oh, that infamous love triangle! Or is it a quadrangle now? Well, it was a fun little romp, and a good looking book for sure.

Doug: This was a really good story, much better than some of the others in the Masterworks volume and certainly among the best Hulk stories I've seen in my very-limited Hulk-reading. John Severin's inks quite simply work miracles over Herb Trimpe's pencils. I remarked to Karen that while there is no doubt that the Hulk is Trimpe's, the rest of the book has Severin's fine stamp all over it. It's a really nice-looking story. Archie Goodwin's script is OK -- he has everyone's voice down pretty well. But as I said earlier, I'm just not sure about the abrupt change in Havok's powers. To the best of my knowledge, we've not seen Alex do any of this since. Does it make him more interesting? Well... yes. So maybe others should have run with it instead of always falling back on the "I'm too powerful, I'm dangerous" schtick. What sayest thou?

The Birth of Phoenix, part 1: X-Men 97

X-Men #97 (February 1976)

“My Brother, My Enemy!”
Chris Claremont/Dave Cockrum-Sam Grainger

Doug:      Mutant Mayhem-time, True Believers! Let’s hearken back to the days before the X-Universe exploded to the point of convolution that drove me away from a long-time favorite title. This multi-parter will take a look at the All-New, All-Different X-Men’s first battle against the Sentinels, in only the team’s fifth appearance.

Doug: I came to this version of the X-Men with issue 95. I had a friend who had GS X-Men #1 and X-Men #94, so I was quickly up to speed on what was happening. I also had a coverless copy of X-Men #58, so Havok was no surprise to me, either. So it was with much anticipation that I entered the fray that would become a very fun little arc.

Karen: I was lucky enough to have gotten Giant Size X-Men #1 when it came out, and every issue other than #95 (which I acquired many years later). Although I consider the Avengers my all-time favorite super-team, I don’t think I ever followed them as intensely as I did these all-new, all-different X-Men! From GS X-Men #1 til about the time Byrne left, X-Men was my favorite book.

Doug: You know, when I think of multiple plotlines, foreshadowing, etc. I think of John Byrne. It’s difficult to pick up a Byrne-scribed book from the 1980’s that didn’t have stories flying all over.

But Chris Claremont certainly gives the Canadian a run for his money! We begin with Professor X in the midst of a nightmare, seeing battling starships in a galaxy far, far away. The mystery deepens as the last image Xavier glimpses before awaking is of a figure extending a hand toward him – and then gone. Hmmm… Xavier is comforted at the breakfast table by Moira MacTaggert, who we later find out is being escorted by Banshee. More plot-thickening.

Karen: You ever notice how all of Claremont’s characters have extremely convoluted back stories? Here’s Moira MacTaggert, housekeeper and general nursemaid. Oh, and she happens to know how to handle a machine gun (issue 96), and she’s actually a world class geneticist! This is something I know Byrne complained about, particularly when Claremont gave peasant Peter Rasputin a cosmonaut brother, Cyclops a space-pirate dad, and Kitty Pryde went from Byrne’s idea of a nice normal kid to being a super-genius. Nobody can have a simple backstory!

Doug: Karen, then we bounce out to your stomping grounds in the American southwest to drop in on Alex Summers and Lorna Dane. These two have apparently fallen in love – a storyline that was hinted at first by Roy Thomas and Neal Adams a few years earlier. As Alex goes off to do some geological surveying, Lorna is zapped by a super-baddie; her cry alerts Alex who sprints back to their cabin. He spies Lorna with a new costume (ah, that Dave Cockrum – always revamping), and asks what the deal is. Her reply? She blasts him and he passes out.

Karen: The Alex/Lorna romance was also touched upon in The Incredible Hulk #150. Although it’s a full-fledged relationship here in X-Men 97. I’m not sure what to think of Cockrum’s new costume for Lorna – it’s obviously a Shi’ar design. That reminds me, if the Shi’ar are an avian race, why do all their ships and costumes have insect motifs? I mean, it looks cool and all, but does that make any sense?

Doug: I thought the new Polaris suit was slightly reminiscent of Princess Projectra over in the Legion.

Doug: Back in New York, the new team is seeing Prof. X off on a vacation at JFK. As they exchange pleasantries and good-byes (the prize here is the introduction of Nightcrawler’s image inducer, designed by Tony Stark), who should show up but Havok and Lorna, dressed to fight. A battle of course ensues, some 747s are destroyed and general airport-destruction goes down.

Karen: “General airport destruction” indeed! Cockrum gives us some very dynamic artwork here. 

Doug: Do you suppose Cockrum was influenced by the various Airport disaster movies of this era?

Karen: I think his artwork here was probably more spectacular than any effects they could have done back then!

Doug: The mastermind behind Havok’s and Lorna’s mind-control is revealed, in quite possibly the king of our “Dressed for Success or Fashion Disaster” feature – Eric the Red! Eric the Red? Are you kidding me? Not who I would have pulled out from the annals of X-dom to be one of the first big bad guys.

Karen: An odd choice to be sure. I would agree,Eric could easily get a spot as a fashion disaster sometime! You were thinking disaster, right, Doug?

Doug: Without a doubt, sister!

Doug: The ultimate knockdown-dragout occurs over the next eight pages, and is a showcase of two things: the X-Men are individually able to showcase their powers and abilities, a must since the book was only in its fifth issue, and we also become painfully aware that due to their lack of experience and chemistry they are outmatched. The highlights for me in this melee are the total lack of power displayed by Jean Grey (she will become Phoenix in our concluding tale -- #100) and the art of Cockrum. He is excellent on Havok – I have always loved the simplicity of the costume and the way it works with light and the motif of the concentric circles. Just really well-paced, exciting storytelling here with great Bronze Age art.

Karen: Jean is taken out quickly – I wonder, was this done to emphasize how powerful she became later on as Phoenix? As for the rest of the battle, I thought this was just fantastic work by Cockrum. He seemed to excel at showing energy blasts and explosions. The scenes of an enraged Storm blasting Polaris are thrilling.

Doug: Banshee and Wolverine arrive as the cavalry, but too late, as Eric the Red escapes with Havok and Lorna in his clutches. Wolverine screams at Cyclops to take a shot at them, but Scott freezes up. This brings up yet another occasion for Wolverine to question Cyke’s leadership and of course sets up future tensions. Another little bit of Claremont’s foreshadowing. 

Karen: Ah yes, this was before Wolverine became a super-star, so he could still be slapped around by Cyclops and backed down by Storm. I found that refreshing! Speaking of foreshadowing, how about the groovy last panel with the “monitor within a monitor etc” motif? Long-time X-fans would surely notice that large purple leg – although even if you missed it, the blurb below would tell you that, “The Sentinels Return!”