JOURNEY INTO MYSTERY #125: Who Will You B?

Published: February, 1966

“When Meet the Immortals!”
Script: Stan Lee
Pencils: Jack Kirby
Inks: Vince Colletta
Letters: Artie Simek

efore I read a Marvel comic, after the colorful drama of the cover and the splash, I always take a moment to peruse the credit box. I like to see who in the Marvel bullpen has contributed to this particular issue, but more importantly, I enjoy the overblown language and inevitable humor at the letterer’s expense. The credit box in this issue did not disappoint, and in fact gave me an idea for how to approach the story of “When Meet the Immortals!”

This Badass Bullpen Box Blows up with a lot of “B” words, setting the tone for the rest of the issue. Was this intentional? Probably not. But I like to find meaning where perhaps no meaning is intended. It makes the universe more interesting. So, as far as I’m concerned, “B” has become the theme for this issue of Journey Into Mystery. First, I’ll evaluate how well the performance of the creators held up to their promises.

“Bombastically written by Stan Lee”? Yes, agreed. Very bombastic. As usual. Though in making this determination, it struck me as funny that until the summer before the 2016 Presidential Election, I could probably have counted on one hand the number of times I’d heard the word “bombastic.” But now, after nine years, I can’t help thinking, “If I had a nickel for every time I’ve heard the word ‘bombastic…'” Well…I’d probably have enough money to buy…something…pretty big. (Hmmm, maybe…an election?)

Moving on to “Brilliantly drawn by Jack Kirby,” I judge this artwork as up to his usual standard. It was good, but I would hardly use the word “brilliant.”

Next: “Beautifully inked by Vince Coletta.” Here again, I don’t know that I would use that exact word. In my limited experience thus far with Coletta, I usually feel there’s too much ink—as he does here in depicting Hercules’ and Thor’s muscles. (Are those muscles, or dirt, or do they share a skin disease?)

However, in this issue, I also found several instances where there seemed not enough ink! Some of the facial features are so flat and spotless they barely look realistic. Do people in Marvel comics never get wrinkles or blemishes? I want Jane Foster’s skin tone! What products does she use, what sunscreen? In one place, however, Jane’s nose is reduced to two small dots, and here in the heat of battle Thor’s anger and emotional turmoil are reduced to no eyes, a few sharp lines, and a round open mouth, almost anime style. I’m not sure what to expect from Mr. Coletta at this moment, but none of this strikes me as “beautiful.”

Finally, we reach the punchline: “Bashfully lettered by Artie Simek.” Now, this is as it should be. The less the lettering draws attention to itself, the better. Consistent and inobtrusive—bashful is the way to go with lettering.

Which brings up another point: I always get a chuckle out of the letterer’s credit, but I wonder if the letterer (usually Artie Simek or Sam Rosen) ever minded being the butt of the joke. I’m guessing their paychecks were not as large as Lee and Kirby’s, but did they also suffer the humiliation of feeling unappreciated?

WORDS
Now I move past the credits, and as I begin to read, I continue to find I am focused on the letter “B” and easily pick out a number of breathtakingly beguiling words.

First, Thor is heard to swear, “By the bristling beard of Odin!” Oh yes! Sheer poetry. As one would expect from Thor. Later, he says “a heavy weight has been lifted from my bosom.” Again, this language is so flowery and archaic, completely befitting a Norse god. But at the same time, you have to admit, there is something inherently funny about the word “bosom.” Often used in a description of a hefty dowager, it is equally amusing in portraying the overly emotional state of a noble superhero.

At another point, we have a repetition of the word “Back! Back! Back!” Again I say: poetry. Then, Thor creates a “SONIC BOOM” that causes Heimdall to “crumble in shock.” Here we do not get the traditional “Barroom!” I have come to expect from Journey Into Mystery, but I’ll take a SONIC BOOM any day.

And finally, Thor exclaims, “Verily it is Beyond Belief!” At which point, I’m thinking, it’s beyond belief how much mileage the writers of this tale have gotten out of the simple letter B!

WHO WILL YOU B?
Everything I’ve mentioned thus far is well and good, but only scratches the surface of what we can do with the letter B. As a letter, B has certain charms, but as a phonetic indicator for the word “be,” a whole new level of exploration opens up. Because in this story, I quickly became aware that almost every character is encountering some psychological quandary regarding who they R, and who they might B in the future. We are getting right down to the fundamentals of personality with so many characters, on so many levels.

Let’s take a look.

THE DEMON
Let’s get the Demon out of the way quickly, because his quandary comes to an abrupt end when Thor knocks him out and rips the Norn Stone from his neck. This flash in the pan villain proves less than impressive because his power was completely centered in a magical object that could be easily taken away. His power relies not on the idea of who he might BE, but rather what he might possess. So the B word that comes to mind when I think of the Demon is Brittle. His power is weak, fragile, transitory. And now he has been Beaten.

By all accounts, I do not expect to see the Demon again, though I am disappointed because this moniker is too good to be wasted over only a few issues. I will be on the lookout for a resurgence of the name, if not the actual character.

JANE FOSTER ON THE REBOUND
Baffled and Bewildered are the B words that come to mind as I observe Jane’s behavior in this issue. The poor girl doesn’t seem to know what she wants.

When we last saw Jane, she was deep in the pits of depression because boyfriend Blake never seemed to have enough time for her. Of course, at the time Jane had no idea that in his absence Blake was often doing the work of his alter-ego Thor, but she decided she’d had enough of this treatment and broke it off with the doctor. Distraught, Blake decided it was time to reveal his big secret. Pounding his cane on the floor, he magically transforms to Thor before Jane’s very eyes…

And yet…somehow, she doesn’t seem as astonished as you’d think she would be. “In my heart—” she claims, “I somehow suspected!” And now that she has this amazing revelation, what’s the first thing she does? She grabs Thor’s hand and exclaims, “You must PROMISE—promise—that you’ll never leave me again!”

Whoa! First thought: what a selfish girl! And also, she appears to be living in an alternate reality where she is the center of the universe, and the man in her life has nothing better to do but revolve around her. When Jane thought he was only Blake, running off to help a patient with a dire medical emergency, she couldn’t handle being in second place. What makes her think Asgardian god Thor will be able to devote more time to her than Blake? And what makes her think that between his TWO personas, he’s now somehow going to be able to spend any time with her at all? If he’s not Blake saving a heart attack patient, as Thor he’ll be out fighting supervillains and saving the world. Yet now that she knows all this, she is suddenly demanding more attention from him than ever before.

I suspect that Jane Foster may be suffering from low self-esteem. Her situation reminds me so strongly of one of my favorite Star Trek: The Next Generation episodes, “In Theory.” Android Data agrees to take on the role of significant other for female crew member Jenna D’Sora, with whom he shares a mild affinity. Jenna eventually realizes “I got out of a relationship with an unemotional man. And I got right back into another one with…with a man who’s…absolutely incapable of emotion.” She unintentionally sent herself into a deepening, darkening spiral.

Jane is doing the same thing: setting herself up for failure. Why? Perhaps her self-destructive behavior can be attributed to the fact that she is overcoming depression, and also on a romantic rebound. If so, no matter what she’s looking for in a relationship, now is the worst time to start one!

Yet, released from the hospital, she suddenly becomes mesmerized by charming new superhero Hercules. Is Hercules indeed “mesmerizing” Jane with some godly power, or is she simply succumbing to the allure of the archetypal Bad Boy, letting herself fall under his spell, which, of course, is doomed to send her deeper and deeper into the destructive spiral of failure that she perhaps subconsciously feels she deserves?

TAMING THE BAD BOY
Personally, I’ve never understood the attraction of the Bad Boy. Sure, the allure of danger, sex and excitement can be fun for the couple of hours it takes to watch a movie, but why would any woman purposely choose such a real-life partner?

For as long as we’ve known her, Jane has been enthralled with the romantic attention of her employer Dr. Blake. Yet she somehow cannot prevent herself from slipping off into a fantasy land where she dreams instead of the powerful Thor as her permanent house buddy whom she plans to train into domesticity: trimming his hair, ironing his clothes, polishing his hammer. (Ahem…) In comparison to Blake, Thor presents as the Bad Boy, a strong man who cannot be tamed. Nevertheless, she dreams of taming him.

Hercules now suddenly appears as the new Bad Boy who needs to be tamed. “His strength is like Thor’s!” she marvels, “But he’s more reckless—more brutal—!” Doesn’t she realize this Bad Boy is no more likely than Thor to be home every night for dinner, never mind letting her cut his hair? And yet, even as she contemplates that Hercules reminds her of Thor, she also believes “he’s so very different!” Well, which is it, girl? Like Thor, or “so very different”? It can’t be both.

JANE THE BITCH?
I like Jane. I feel sorry for her. Sympathetic. A part of me wants to believe the best about her: that some powerful enchantment from Mt. Olympus is supernaturally causing her to be mesmerized by the enthralling Hercules. But then, when Thor finally bursts into the soda shop and bellows out an enthusiastic “Jane! I have returned!”, she blithely replies “Really? I forgot you had been away!” Ouch! Either she had truly forgotten Thor due to an enchantment, or she’s simply playing the part of a woman scorned, attempting to make him feel as abandoned as he’s made her feel.

Or is she actually saying in no uncertain terms that she is through with him? I guess I won’t know until the next issue, but at this point, I feel as baffled and bewildered by Jane’s behavior as she apparently is about her own path forward. She needs to figure out who she is, and more importantly, who she will BE going forward.

ODIN
The B word that comes to mind when I think of Odin is Bigot. His son is in love with an unacceptable mate, someone who is not “one of their own kind.”

Things being what they are, Odin’s essentially got four choices on how to deal with this situation.

1. He could be a loving, caring parent who, though disappointed in his son’s choice, eventually realizes that what he wants most is for his son to simply be happy. But…nah…that’s apparently not going to happen.
2. He could lay down the law and forbid Thor from seeing that earthling female. Actually, he tried that in the past, but it didn’t work, so here we are again, back at the starting line.
3. He could banish his errant offspring from Asgard! Here on earth, we know this as “disownment,” a common manipulation of earthly parents who do not approve of their children’s choices. He’s already tried that one too, and it did not end well.
4. But Odin’s not fooling around anymore. Now he’s blowing right past bossiness, banishment and disownment and chooses instead the harshest penalty of all: The Ritual of Steel. He sets all the brave fighting men of Asgard against his own son knowing the result could be Thor’s death. At this point, Odin would rather see Thor dead than with a woman who is not up to Asgardian standards. And if by chance Thor should survive the Ritual of Steel (which he does), then we’re right back to “He shall nevermore set foot upon the planet Earth!”

I’ve never been a tremendous fan of Odin (except, occasionally, for his fashion choices) and this issue makes me like him even less.

Admittedly it must be a hard job being a king, and perhaps even more difficult being a god. But when you are a king, and a god, much more is expected of you than of an ordinary human being. Odin, you must decide, who are you going to B? The bigoted authoritarian who would choose to see your child dead rather than happy? Come, now! Many mere earthlings can find a way to make this simple choice. Why can’t you?

THOR
Is Thor losing his senses when it comes to Jane Foster? Blinded by love? Unable to hear the Bells of caution? The conglomeration of events in this issue should make Thor seriously reconsider his priorities. Will he still be willing to DIE for this mortal woman, who obviously doesn’t share his level of commitment? Her casual “Really? I forgot you had been away!” ought to ring loud enough to wake him from his lovestruck stupor. Perhaps it’s time for him to reexamine his commitments. What a tragedy if after everything he’s been willing to give up for Jane, she is unwilling or unable to retreat from her unrealistic expectations and meet him in a place where they both can BE together in harmony.

HERCULES
Finally, let’s consider Hercules. This is his second appearance in Journey Into Mystery, and you’ve got to love his Boisterous personality as he appears on the scene as a fish out of water, sent to earth by Zeus (for some unknown purpose). He starts off with a snooze, then throws around some trees, and when he hears the train is headed into the city, he’s totally on board!

“Hercules has always loved cities! It is there where the crowds are—where revelry and merry-making are ever to be found!” So, he’s a fish out of water, but ALSO a party boy; no doubt some good story stuff is on the way. He is, as Jane notes, “so very different” than Thor, in that Thor is no party boy. Thor is a serious avenger of evil, committed to the task at hand. He only strays from his “all business” persona in his star-crossed love for the mortal Jane Foster.

BATTLE OF THE BIGSHOTS
Though Thor and Hercules briefly met in a Belly-Bumping Battle in Journey Into Mystery Annual #1, here they are pitted against each other, not only as physically strong heroes, but also on a much more personal level, due to Jane’s mixed-up emotions. Thor does not suffer fools, and that is how Hercules appears to him in their ill-fated encounter in the soda shop. Thor is just trying to talk to his girl, Herc takes exception to his interference…and the Brawl Begins!

What happens next? Who will be victorious in battle and bag the babe? As Stan would say: B sure to B back for the next ish!