Strange Tales #135: Review

Aug 1965

Stan Lee, Jack Kirby

Story Name:

The man for the job

Review & Comments

Rating:

Strange Tales #135 Review by Rob Johnson (May 14, 2013)

Comments (Dr Strange):- Sir Baskerville will be next seen in #141 where he teams up with Kaecilius and Adria after their master Mordo has been banished by Dormammu to a dimension of demons. But a younger version will also appear in a WWII adventure in Dr Strange v2 #50-51.

Comments (SHIELD):- A blockbuster opening episode by Lee and Kirby. The Nick Fury, Agent of SHIELD strip takes over from Dr Strange's partners in Strange Tales, Human Torch & Thing. It is a response to the James Bond movies and the Man from UNCLE TV series with its perennial enemy THRUSH. G-2 was Military Intelligence during WWII, but I think it had been subsumed by the CIA by now. Nick was said to be a Colonel in the CIA in Fantastic Four #21. Nick has his famous eye-patch here, but didn't have one in FF#21. Sgt Fury & his Howling Commandos #27 gave Fury a WWII eye-injury that would eventually cripple his eye, to explain the discrepancy. The Fury 1-shot gave him another injury in between FF#21 and her, which triggered the need for the eye-patch. We hear the Hydra catchphrase "Cut of a limb and 2 more shall take its place". But the big boss isn't called Imperial Hydra yet. (Supreme Hydra is Baron Strucker behind the scenes.) It is widely accepted that Agent H is Laura Brown, daughter of the Imperial Hydra, despite the fact that daughter Laura is called Agent G when we see her in #137. There she doesn't seem to be anywhere near as enthusiastic a Hydra member, and eventually she betrays them and becomes Nick's girlfriend. It isn't explained how Fury was flown (by car) to the helicarrier without seeing what it was.

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Synopsis / Summary / Plot

Strange Tales #135 Synopsis by Rob Johnson

Col Nick Fury of G-2 has been called to the Pentagon for an LMD. This turns out to mean being measured for something called a Life Model Decoy. Later when he's taken up onto the street he sees 4 copies of himself walk off and get assassinated. In the confusion he's driven off in a Porsche 904.

Out in the country they get napalm bombed from a plane. The car sails through the flames, and shoots down the plane with Sidewinder missiles. Then it converts its wheels into horizontal fans, and takes to the air. The driver says he works for SHIELD (Supreme Headquarters International Espionage Law-enforcement Division), and the guys trying to kill Fury are members of Hydra, a group bent on world domination.

A motorcyclist reports the assassination failure to his superior at Hydra. That guy has to carry the can to the head of Hydra (complete with cigarette holder and panther-on-a-chain). As punishment he has to fight a duel on swinging pendulums against his prospective replacement. The replacement is armed with an electric pistol, the replacee is armed just with desperation. The pistol wins. The replacer, Agent H, is the 1st female to reach this rank.

Nick Fury is greeted by Tony Stark, who is in charge of SHIELD weapons tech, and led to a chair surrounded by a council of world-famous faces. Stark repeats the idea of Hydra, and invites Nick to lead SHIELD in stopping them.

Fury protests that he's a fighter not a manager. But then he notices a wire leading to his chair, and suspects a bomb. He hurls the chair through a window, where it explodes harmlessly. But then he realises that they are in a huge flying craft (the SHIELD helicarrier).

Nick automatically takes charge, ordering security measures and ensuring the safe capture of whoever planted the bomb. And agrees to run the show.

Story #2

Eternity beckons

Writer: Stan Lee. Writer: Steve Ditko. Penciler: Steve Ditko. Inker: Steve Ditko. Letterer: Sam Rosen.

Synopsis / Summary / Plot

By Rob Johnson

Dr Strange is searching for the meaning of the word 'Eternity' whispered by the sick Ancient One. But Baron Mordo's agents are searching for him. Strange knows Mordo has recently increased in power, but doesn't know this power comes from Dormammu.

In his Dark Dimension Dormammu discovers that it was Clea who freed the Mindless Ones last issue, to help Strange. He plots revenge.

Evading one of Mordo's agents in London, Steven goes to see Sir Baskerville, a retired disciple of Mordo, who seems eager to help. But Baskerville telepathically contacts Mordo, who transports a current disciple (elsewhere named Kaecilius) there to be his remote body.

Baskerville distracts Strange while Mordo/Kaecilius attacks him from behind. But Strange's suspicions had been aroused, and he was an illusion. Next Strange animates a suit of armour with his cloak of levitation, and Kaecilius chases it, running into the real Strange's fist. Mordo loses contact with his KO'd minion.

Dr Strange hypnotises Baskerville, and learns that he knows nothing of Eternity. Strange also reads the mind of the sleeping Kaecilius, and learns of Mordo's connection to Dormammu.

Meanwhile Mordo has sent evil spirits against Strange. But Steven mystically convinces them that he's gone to the Netherworld, and the spirits follow. With the failure of all his minions, Mordo arms himself with the power of Dormammu and transports himself to Baskerville castle to tackle his foe personally. Only to find that Strange has left.