Published: November, 1964
Script: Stan Lee
Pencils: Don Heck
Inks: Dick Ayers
Letters: Sam Rosen
As I read this installment of The Avengers, it struck me that this story is completely overloaded with BS. You know what I mean by BS, and I hope you also know I don’t say this in derision (well…mostly not in derision). Some of it’s the kind of BS the publisher feels is necessary to get folks to plop down their twelve cents, and some of it is the kind that moves the story from Point A to Point B. I’m okay with all that. In addition, some of it is the BS that defines characters, and I’m okay with that too.
What I’m not okay with is the BS that defines the sexist '60’s…but that was a long time ago, so what can I do about it now, except gripe? If I had the power of the Enchantress and could turn back time to revisit 1964, maybe I would…but really, what good would it do? The past is the past, and thank God it’s over and we can move forward. But before moving forward, let’s take a moment to review all the BS Marvel dished out in “The Avengers Break Up.”
BS: “THE AVENGERS BREAK UP”
Okay, let’s start with the title. The Avengers Break Up. Now, I love soap opera in comics just as much as the next person (or, possibly, even more) but even I think this title is over the top.
What does it mean? I’m sure most people, like me, consider “break up” the angsty dissolution of a romantic relationship. Which is utterly ridiculous in the case of the Avengers. So then, why was that term used? Did it mean something different in 1964? Or was Stan simply playing with expectations, saying something outrageous to make the comic book audience sit up and take notice?
BS: IMMORTUS IS A TRULY DIFFERENT VILLAIN
Immortus is described first as “a truly different villain,” and then as the Master of Time, the one who rules the mystic realm of Limbo, where things never change. His specialties are manipulating time and providing historic combatants. But haven’t we seen this before?
BS: THE OTHER AVENGERS TOGETHER CAN’T DEFEAT CAPTAIN AMERICA
Since Cap is the only one of them without superpowers, we have an introductory bit of the other Avengers attempting to wrangle him. The 47-second effort is punctuated with a 
heartfelt “You might at least BREATHE HARD to make us feel better!” To which I say: BS.
Sure, I understand Cap is the newest Avenger, so extreme efforts are being made to make him feel welcome and powerful, but for me this whole scene smacks of patronizing overkill. Sort of like when you let your kindergarten nephew beat you at checkers and then exclaim how skilled and intelligent he is.
On the plus side, it’s annoyed me in the past when the male members of the Fantastic Four have gone out of their way to explain why Sue’s girlie powers are just as valid as their own (How can we ever forget Reed’s impassioned speech about Abraham Lincoln’s mother?), so now it’s refreshing to see the same sort of overcompensation being practiced on the male sex.
BS: RICK JONES DESERVES TO BE AN OFFICIAL MEMBER OF THE AVENGERS
Early in the story, Iron Man suggests they make Rick Jones an “official” member of the Avengers and give him “some sort of uniform.” Considering the audience, I understand why Stan would want to install an average teenage boy as an Avenger. The readers would eat it up! But why in the world would the Avengers even consider such a thing?
Why? Because Rick’s THERE? Because he’s the leader of the Teen Brigade? Because he’s Cap’s little buddy? Rick’s doing a bang-up job with the Teen Brigade, let him stay where his contributions are most appropriate and appreciated. He does not have superpowers, he doesn’t even have exceptional human strength; he has no business being an Avenger. Unless we want to totally water down what it means to be an Avenger. Do we want to do that? No.
Your little nephew’s team might lose in a game of pee-wee football, and yet he still brings home a trophy for “participation.” Let’s get Rick Jones something like that, rather than putting him in harm’s way and destroying the integrity of the Avengers.
BS: RICK JONES DESERVES TO BE AN AVENGER…JUST LIKE THE WASP
As if it’s not bad enough that Iron Man would even begin to suggest Rick Jones become an Avenger, he qualifies his argument with some reasoning I find truly offensive: he suggests Rick Jones’ membership should be made “OFFICIAL, as the Wasp’s is.”
What??
Why is he comparing Rick to the Wasp? Correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t Wasp a superhero, with, y’know, super-powers?
What if Iron Man were to say “Why don’t we make Rick’s membership in the Avengers OFFICIAL, as THOR’S is…”? Would that fly? Never! I don’t understand why Wasp is being referred to as a second class citizen. Is Iron Man belittling her contribution because she’s tiny? Or because she’s a woman? Or, is it maybe Tony Stark’s voice coming out from behind that Iron Mask, revealing the playboy’s philosophy that women are only good for one thing?
BS: RICK JONES FALLS FOR THE OLD “YOU TOO CAN HAVE SUPERPOWERS…AND IT WILL COST YOU ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!”
Rick Jones sees an ad on the back of a comic book saying “You can obtain Super Powers, Send No Money” and falls for it immediately, no questions asked. Why?
- Because he’s a teenager
- Because he’s a teenager in the Marvel Universe
- Because he’s a teenager in the Marvel Universe who so badly wants to be an Avenger
- Because he’s a teenager in the 1960’s, so he unequivocally believes that if something is in PRINT, it MUST be true
BS: CAP CORRECTLY JUMPS TO THE CONCLUSION THAT IMMORTUS’ BOGUS AD WAS PLACED SPECIFICALLY TO LURE RICK JONES
When Cap sees the ad, he recognizes it’s bogus, which actually struck me as odd, because you would think Cap, a product of the 1940’s, would be even more gullible than the kids of the 1960’s. But he’s wearing big boy pants now, and resolutely refuses to be swayed by offers too good to be true, even if they are in print. (Maybe the FF should hire Cap to screen all the incoming mail at the Baxter Building.)
So, Cap starts off smartly, but then immediately jumps to the conclusion that the ad was placed specifically so Rick would answer it. Of course, in this case, it happens to be true, but doesn’t it seem a little too “The World Revolves Around Me” to make that assumption?
Oh well, I guess when you’re Captain America, perhaps more often than not, the world does revolve around you.
BS: CAP BELIEVES THAT IF A SUPER-VILLAIN SAYS IT, IT MUST BE TRUE
So far, Cap’s BS meter has been working at full tilt. But it gets all out of whack when he talks directly to Immortus, who claims the Avengers revealed to him that the best way to aggravate Cap was by kidnapping “the boy.” It just so happens that Immortus knows this because he’s been secretly watching the Avengers to find out how they tick. But after gleaning this information, he creates some elaborate BS with the sole intention of ticking off Captain America. And it works.
Why? Maybe Cap hasn’t dealt with enough super-villains to realize they’re a bunch of LIARS, not to be trusted. Or could it be he’s simply looking for someone to blame, and jumps at the first suggestion, no matter who makes it? Cap is thinking emotionally here, not rationally, and it gets him in trouble.
BS: HISTORICAL FIGURES MAKE GREAT COMBATANTS…UNLESS YOU’RE A GIRL
As I mentioned before, this is not the first time we’ve seen historical figures in Marvel Comics. They come with established back stories, so there’s no need to spend a lot of time on character revelation or development. Let’s just get straight to the action!
It’s a natural that Immortus pits Giant-Man against Goliath, but in the end, Henry Pym’s smarts win out over size. Iron Man fights Merlin the Magician in an epic battle of technology vs. magic, then Thor takes on Hercules, ultimately proving that the cape is mightier than the loin cloth.
Wasp, however, doesn’t get a chance to fight a historical figure on her own, proving that either a) Immortus does not consider her a true Avenger, or b) Stan Lee does not consider her a true Avenger. Ummmmm…. BS!
Of course, later in the story, Wasp distracts the Enchantress, breaking the spell over Giant-Man and saving his giant you-know-what. So! Seems Wasp has something to contribute after all. But it all just sort of happens as an aside, not a main event.
BS: TIME TRAVEL SOLVES ALL PROBLEMS
As a final retreat from battle, the Enchantress casts a spell to go back “a few days in the past,” before they met Immortus. She reverts the clock for herself and her band of evildoers, but also for the Avengers. (One must assume time has also been turned back for THE ENTIRE UNIVERSE, but that’s completely beside the point.) The important thing here is that the Avengers are not aware they’ve been sent back in time, and are stupidly reliving discussions that should have never taken place the first time around.
I don’t like this. Not only because we once again have to hear Iron Man say, “Why don’t we make his membership in the Avengers OFFICIAL, as the Wasp’s is?” but also because I feel at least THOR, as a god, should be aware of what’s happened. Do none of them, in their combined arsenal of superpowers, possess a keener than average sense of déjà vu?
The band of evildoers, however, are aware that time is repeating itself. They remember that they failed the first time, and when Immortus reaches out to them anew, there’s a resigned sense of “Oh no! Not this again!”
I’m not a fan of the time-loop theory, except in the classically delightful movie Groundhog Day. Of course, in that story, Bill Murray finally discovers what he needs to do to break the loop.
With this in mind, I believe Marvel Comics will eventually figure out how to make The Avengers better. We can’t go back in time and change this story; we just have to live with it the way it is. But there are many decades of comics yet to come, keeping alive the hope that someday the Marvel Universe will be more fair, and make more sense.
| Want to read this comic on your computer? Marvel has a scan! Want to own this story? Buy the Masterworks! |
Chrissy,
I agree that this was a poor effort, lacking a strong plot or villain. Rick Jones comes off as a dunce and Iron-Man comparing Rick to the Wasp is demeaning, even if you look at it from the period of the early 1960s. In terms of characterization one could, perhaps, look at it as Stark being sexist, but no other member challenges his comment, including Hank Pym. If Stark wanted the Avengers to be a boys club, why did he allow Janet to become a member in the first place (of course I’m looking at this in a logical way. Lee was co-plotting and writing the dialogue for lots of stories in this period, and I suspect it was just his personal attitude creeping in.)
Thanks again for an interesting and fun analysis.
The only thing I can think of that makes sense is that in his attempt to make the average reader think, “Wow! Even someone like ME could maybe be part of the Avengers!” Stan simply wasn’t taking care to consider how this ridiculous idea could affect the rest of the group dynamic. And you make a good point, that none of the others challenge the comment. It all strikes me as a bit fan-fiction-y, with common sense taking a back seat to the wishes of the writer…or, in this case, the perceived wishes of the reader. Keep the customer happy, right? Unfortunately, in this case, the customer may be made happy at the expense of the story.