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Avengers, The (1963 series) #329

on-sale: Dec 18, 1990
Larry Hama | Paul Ryan

Avengers, The (1963 series) #329 cover

Story Name:

Starting Line-Up


Synopsis

Avengers, The (1963 series) #329 synopsis by T Vernon
Rating: 4 stars
All available Avengers past and present gather for a special meeting to address urgent issues. First is the loss of their charter, revoked by the US as a condition in negotiations with the Soviet Union. Chairman Captain America brings in Devi Bannerjee, an official with the United Nations, offering a charter making them a part of the UN peace-keeping force if they admit international members to be assigned to areas that the UN currently has no ability to pursue (cosmic, extraterrestrial, occult, subterranean, and more). The members present unanimously vote to accept this new charter….

In Hell’s Kitchen, a lady on a sightseeing tour of New York notes that the sculptures on a particular church are grotesque. They are, since they are the monsters escaped from the Dimension of Exile last issue, led by Ngh the Unspeakable and the fairy-like Xa, who are in hiding as they plot against the Avengers. The lady sees them fly away and freaks out but no one takes her seriously….

At Avengers Headquarters, the next order of business is completed, agreeing on a current lineup. The lucky heroes are Thor, Sersi, Vision, Quasar, Black Widow, She-Hulk, and Captain America, the Chairman…or Chairbeing as not all of the members are human. The next order of business is to select a reserve team. The exhausted heroes are losing patience, with Spider-Man annoying a drowsy Hercules and the Sub-Mariner objecting to all the talk of regulations….

Meanwhile, Jarvis is serving tea and the other members of the support staff (John Jameson, Peggy Carter, Michael O’Brien) are waiting to see what develops, along with Rage and a mysterious masked man, who seems eager to aid the Avengers….

Drug Dealer L.D. 50 is upset with Rage interfering in his business and he is planning to retaliate. Outside, Ngh and the others are listening in; Ngh finds L.D. to be a likely subject for a partnership. So the monsters enter, Ngh speaking in a ridiculous version of street slang to gain L.D.’s attention and offer to get rid of Rage for them. L.D. clarifies that this doesn’t involve selling his soul to the Satanic-looking Ngh and wondering why the monsters need them; Ngh says it’s because they’re on the lam….

That night, the Avengers hold a public announcement in front of their new HQ. After introducing the new lineup, they move on to present the Reserve Substitutes: Spider-Man, Black Knight, Falcon, Hercules, and Captain Marvel (Monica Rambeau). J. Jonah Jameson reacts to Spidey but Robbie Robertson calms him down. Cap reveals that the reserves also include two probationary members who they hope will graduate to full membership: Rage and the Sandman, Cap noting that the latter has been pardoned by the President. While introducing Rage, Cap refers to his grandmother as if she were dead, which gets an odd reaction from the big guy. Then a protester, Aurelia Lumpen-Parvenu, hurls an egg at Rage, calling him an Uncle Tom….

In Brooklyn L.D.’s gang and the monsters are watching the Avengers event on live television; Ngh can lip-read and picks up on Rage saying the name Granny Staples, giving them a clue to Rage’s weakness….

Rage tells off Aurelia, rejecting her claims that he’s a fascist like the Avengers and explaining that understanding and social change must come from within and if the Avengers are willing to try to understand him, that’s all right. Then there appears in the sky the Tetrarchs of Entropy, glowing figures of Yod of the All-Seeing Eye (a pyramid with an eye on each side), the serpentine Hafga of the Coils of Infinity, Vug of the Burning (a fireball), and Heml of the Myriad Visages (a figure with two giant faces hovering behind). They accuse the Avengers of helping Ngh the unspeakable escape from the Dimension of Exile and for that crime they are sentenced to that realm forever, effective immediately. The Avengers are then teleported away. The reserve team leaps into action but are flattened by a force field as the Tetrarchs depart….

In the Dimension of Exile, the Avengers are now trapped. Thor has the ability to return—but Mjolnir is sealed within a large unbreakable crystal; Sersi is also contained inside a large crystal, conscious but helpless. Vision decides to put some thought into the matter….

Granny Staples is awoken by the doorbell in the middle of the night. She discovers Ngh on her doorstep. She recognizes him as the Devil and is ready to fight….


Characters
Good (or All)
AVENGERS
BLACKKNIGHT
BLACKWIDOW
CAP
CAPMARMR
FALCON
HERCULES
JJJAMESON
JARVIS
PEGGYCARTER
QUASAR
ROBBIEROBERTSON
SANDMAN
SERSI
SHEHULK
SPIDERMAN
SUBMARINER
THOR
VISION
Plus: John Jameson, Michael O'Brien, Rage (Elvin Daryl Haliday).

Enemies
Ngh the Unspeakable, Tetrarchs Of Entropy.

> Avengers, The (1963 series) comic book info and issue index



Excelsioring your collection:
statue
Holy smokes, Batman!
(The Boy Wonder)

Main/1st Story Full Credits

Paul Ryan
Tom Palmer
Christie Scheele
Paul Ryan (Cover Penciler)
Tom Palmer (Cover Inker)
Unknown (Cover Colorist)
Additional Credits
Letterer: Bill Oakley.
Editor: Howard Mackie. Editor-in-chief: Tom DeFalco.



Review / Commentaries


Avengers, The (1963 series) #329 Review by (January 25, 2025)
Comments: Part four of six parts. Other Avengers in cameos include Iron Man (Tony Stark), Hawkeye, Mockingbird, Namor, Hank Pym, Quicksilver, Scarlet Witch, Tigra, U.S. Agent, Wasp, and Wonder Man. First appearance of the Tetrarchs of Entropy, previously mentioned in issue #327. Sole appearance of Aurelia Lumpen-Parvenu (lumpen = the lowest strata of society and parvenu = a nobody who has suddenly become rich and/or famous). A No-Prize to anyone who knows how Ngh and company got from the hospital to the church without being seen.  

Review: Easily the funniest thing from Larry Hama’s brief run is a demonic monster called Ngh the Unspeakable speaking to an urban drug dealer in an absurd urban patois that doesn’t match the gangster’s erudite vocabulary. This is sandwiched between a boring business meeting and the arrival of multiple cosmic beings who kick our heroes off-planet. It’s a very strange combo of plots that almost push Larry Hama into Steve Gerber territory. This can only get weirder.





Thor

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