TALES TO ASTONISH #58: The Little Woman That Could

Published: August, 1964

So there’s Colossus, this giant monster on a mountaintop in Africa, terrorizing the natives. Giant-Man and Wasp head on over to fight him. Giant-Man gets big, then small, then big again, then small again, and in the end the pea-sized brain of the giant-sized Colossus is swimming so badly, he doesn’t know which end is up, and jumps back in his spaceship. All’s well that ends well.

But that’s not really what this story is about. It’s only the skeleton upon which is hung one particularly impressive development, and its particularly creepy application.

I THINK, THEREFORE I AM
We start in Pym’s lab, where, as usual, he’s working on something new. I guess all those shrinking and enlarging capsules are becoming a bit cumbersome. I mean, how does he keep track of them all? If he’s normal-sized, then shrinks, he needs to take an enlarging capsule. But if he’s giant-sized, how many capsules does he have to take to become ant-sized again? Two…three? What if he takes too many…or not enough? What if he takes the wrong capsule at the wrong time??

Well, we’re past all that now, because in this story, Pym has made modifications to his cybernetic helmet so that all he has to do is THINK about what size he wants to be and …ta dum! He instantly grows or shrinks.

Sure, it’s a time saver and a space saver. However, I can’t help thinking this could be a bit of a story-killer. In the past, we’ve experienced the drama of Pym running out of capsules. We also saw Porcupine steal the capsules and take the wrong one. Oh! The dramatic complications.

All that’s gone now.

And by the way, no mention is made of how what was essentially a pharmaceutical phenomenon now becomes a simple matter of “mind over matter.” Perplexing, no? Probably best not to ask too many questions.

I THINK, THEREFORE YOU ARE
Okay, this is all very well and good for Pym, but my dander got fluffed when I saw this:

What the holy…???? I mean, really now…we’re stepping way beyond the acceptable limits of superhero camaraderie, aren’t we? In what universe is it okay for one person to control another person? Well, if you’re a SUPER-VILLAIN, yeah, that’s what super-villains do. But superheroes don’t. They just don’t. It’s wrong. On so many levels.

Wasp is a strong character who has proven herself a valuable asset to the team. She has a brain, and generally makes good decisions. She certainly doesn’t NEED Pym making those decisions for her. This is a huge step backwards in the development of these characters and their relationship, to say nothing of the big kick in the pants to the blossoming Women’s Lib movement.

And that’s just scratching the surface. What about the blatant sexual undertones in this new development? Well, really, the strange relationship between the GIANT man and his little woman has always been rife with sexual undertones. I’ve already talked about how Giant-Man didn’t even manifest until after Wasp started getting flirty with the hunky Thor. Pym reacts by making sure he’s the biggest guy in the room. Could we be any more obvious? But now, it’s not good enough for him to be the biggest guy in the room, he’s also got to be able to control the little woman by merely thinking about her.

It’s creepy. And I hope this doesn’t last, or it gets modified, or forgotten, or something happens, because I certainly don’t want to read about our sassy Wasp getting blown up and shrunk down at the mere whim of her super-powerful male partner. Yes, I know it’s all for a good cause, but how many ill-begotten ideas have hidden behind that cloak? Let Wasp be Wasp! She’s already proven time and again that she can take care of herself, thank you very much!

THE MAGICIAN AND THE MAIDEN
Plot: Stan Lee
Script: Larry Lieber
Art: Larry Lieber
Letters: Sam Rosen

On a much lighter note, “The Magician and the Maiden” is nowhere near as sexually suggestive as the first story, or even as sexually suggestive as it sounds. When the Magician escapes prison, he seeks revenge on Giant-Man, but gets more than he bargains for when he faces little ol’ Wasp, all by her lonesome.

Here’s another one of those short tales where Wasp takes care of business without Henry’s help, and does just fine. We have some fun in the department store with Wasp driving a toy car and operating a toy robot by remote control. In fact, this is one of the most ridiculous images I’ve yet seen in Marvel comics.

I guess when I was a kid, my parents took me to the wrong department stores, because I don’t remember any “toy” robots as large or elaborate as this. We had a modestly-sized Lost in Space robot, but I doubt it had the capability of tying up people. And the Magician’s a fairly pathetic villain, if he can be vanquished by a puff of air and an escalator. By the way, is that the widest escalator you’ve ever seen? Again I say: my parents took me to the wrong department stores.

But getting back on track, the beauty of this story is that Wasp handles the villain on her own, without the help of Henry Pym, Ant-Man, or even Giant-Man. In the end, when Pym finally shows up, fussing that he was so worried about her, Janet van Dyne uses the moment to steal a hug from her favorite scientist. The girl knows how to get what she wants!

And here’s the best part: at the same time she’s cuddling Pym, declaring “I love being in your arms! They’re so strong, so capable..and I’ll always need them to protect weak little me!” she’s winking at the audience!

She knows, and we know, that any woman who can trap a magician using only a department store escalator and a puff of air has moved way past the need for big strong arms to protect her. She may want them, but she certainly doesn’t need them. This is what I like to see in Marvel Comics—so much more than the obvious, hokey metaphor for keeping the little woman in her place.

But it’s only 1964, and we’re just now on the cusp of the most socially turbulent time of the 20th century. I’m sure Marvel will have many more hits and more misses over the next several years, as the little Misses of Marvel evolve into bigger and bigger hits with the reading audience.