Marvel Triple Action 17, 1974 (originally Avengers 23, 1965) “Once an Avenger…”

Things have been quiet here at Magazines and Monsters, especially on the podcasting front. Well, there is one big reason and I shall reveal it now! I was asked recently to participate in the Super Blog Team-Up event! Some of you may know of this event, and some not, so I shall attempt to educate you on the matter. Simply put, it’s a quarterly event where bloggers (and podcasters) get together to share each other’s love of comics, through blogging about a certain subject (or story line), and share said content throughout the online community. An exercise in building up a community, and as we all know this is needed on social media. On Twitter, you can follow along by searching the hashtag #SBTU or #SuperBlogTeamUp. And these are some of the most interesting and fun blogs you can find anywhere! And needless to say, I feel honored to be among these fine people (links at the bottom to the other blogs/podcasts).

Now, on to the main event! The subject this time around is Immortal! For me, being a long time Marvel zealot, there is one character that pops into my brain right away when I hear that word. His name is Kang…or Immortus…or Rama-Tut if you prefer. But why the three names? Because each represents the same character but at different times in history. Kang first appeared in The Avengers 8, 1964, and announced he was from the far flung future, where he discovers the time travel technology of Dr. Doom, and uses it to travel to ancient Egypt, to rule as Rama-Tut (first appearance was in FF 19, 1963). After ruling there for a spell, he encounters the Fantastic Four (they time traveled into the past to find a cure for Alicia’s blindness :D). The FF defeat him and send him packing. In his time travel vehicle, he encounters Doctor Doom, but the two part ways without any shenanigans. Immortus, who first appeared only two issues after Kang in the pages of The Avengers. He wasn’t more than a schemer with time travel abilities initially, but he is the future version of Kang, that grew weary of battle and was eventually entrusted with being a time keeper of sorts by a “higher power” (Avengers Forever, see below).

The next time we see Kang, is in this story! After the bout with the FF, Kang is back in the future (Avengers 23, 1965), and pining for Ravonna (his love interest, and her first appearance). She’s the daughter of a king, whom Kang defeated in the 40th century. Kang let her father live and stay in power only to try and earn her hand in marriage. She rebuffs him constantly, though, and this infuriates Kang. He sees that Captain America has left the Avengers (in the previous issue), and knows this is the time to strike! He easily captures Hawkeye, Quicksilver, and the Scarlet Witch, and places them in “oversized pickle jars,” to quote Hawkeye. The Scarlet Witch uses her Hex power to bust them out, but this is meaningless to Kang, because he can easily defeat these inexperienced heroes (Wanda and Pietro are very young at this point, and Hawkeye is no match for Kang). Before Kang can unleash the final blow, he’s interrupted by none other than Captain America! With Cap back as their leader, the Avengers manage to stop Kang. But, before he’ll accept defeat, he whisks them all away to his future, where his army awaits to destroy them, and the disobedient king and even his daughter!

There was one more piece of info about this story I’d like to quickly mention. When Cap quits the team, he sees an ad for a sparring partner for a boxing champ. Upon arrival, he’s rebuffed by the champ’s tough guy buddies that are apparently screening the candidates? Cap makes quick work of the meatheads after they not only insult him, but try to assault him thinking he’s a wimp. Hilarious on all levels, with classic Stan Lee banter.

Over the years, Kang hasn’t changed very much, and that’s a good thing. His raison d’être (purpose) is always to either conquer or just simply better himself. This can be by killing someone else, enslaving people, or whatever other nefarious scheme he’s plotting. I’d have to say without much hesitation, that Steve Englehart and his Celestial Madonna story from the 1970s is probably the best Kang I’ve read. The Kurt Busiek and Carlos Pacheco “Avengers Forever” epic and the Roger Stern, John Buscema and Tom Palmer “Under Siege” tale is awesome as well. Look those up for further readings on the Immortal villain, Kang!

Credits in this issue are as follows: Cover by Jack “King” Kirby (pencils), John Romita (inks) and Sam Rosen (letters), “Smilin” Stan Lee (script), “Dashing” Don Heck (pencils), “Jazzy” John Romita (inks), and Artie Simek (letters)!