Synopsis
Avengers, The (1963 series) #140 synopsis by
Rob Johnson
Rating:
Last issue Beast and Yellowjacket captured Whirlwind. Now they return to the hospital where Wasp lies critically injured in a coma. But the size-changing over the last few issues has taken a toll on YJ, because of the microbes in his blood that trapped him at ant-size in Marvel Feature #4. He's been hiding the pain from his teammates, as he rages against his wife's condition. But now he collapses outside the hospital. And Beast detects him visibly growing.
Beast rushes to Janet Pym's hospital room where Thor is keeping vigil. They return to Henry Pym to find him already 20ft long. They can't move him inside if he's going to keep growing. But suddenly Beast dashes off leaving Thor to hold the fort.
Beast in fact heads for the Brand Corporation where he used to work as Henry McCoy, and where he accidentally turned himself into the furry version he is now. He remembers back to when he was working on a cure for mutation. But he had to take a week off for some urgent personal business in Canada (in Amazing Adventures #16 and Hulk #161). This was the last straw for his boss after his recent unexplained absences as the Beast. And so McCoy got fired.
Now he returns to break in to the site to steal some of the serum he invented. After tangling with some guards and getting a bit shot, he finds the serum and escapes. His fast-healing metabolism deals with the gun-shot wounds.
It's interlude time as the red-haired woman from last issue comes to Avengers Mansion asking for the Beast. Jarvis tells her the team is out. We know he's right, but she insists on sitting on the doorstep until Beast does deign to see her. She claims he owes her a favour.
And in a castle abandoned by Dr Doom, Iron Man and Moondragon see the time platform return to the present, with blood on it. The Golden Avenger's 1st instinct is to use the time machine to rescue their missing comrade Hawkeye. But he senses a trap.
Meanwhile Scarlet Witch and Vision return early from honeymoon by quinjet. They happen to spot the giant Yellowjacket and land beside him. Thor brings them up-to-date and Wanda uses her new witch powers to slow his growth down.
Then Beast returns with his serum and says he needs a sample of Henry Pym's blood to examine the microbe that's causing his problem. Thor (with his Dr Blake knowledge) points out that YJ's blood cells will have now grown giant-size. But he adds that they can get similar infected cells from Janet Pym's blood.
Jan's doctor is reluctant to let them near (again) his very ill patient. And he has no reason to believe Beast's medical credentials. Until Dr Don Blake (luckily an old medical school classmate) turns up to vouch for him.
Beast does his research in a hospital lab. And after 5 gruelling hours he comes up with a solution, and rushes out to administer it to Yellowjacket. On the way he learns that Wasp's condition might be improving.
By now YJ has reached the 150ft mark. Vision is ready to deliver the antidote, in payment for the time (#93) when Ant-Man entered his body to repair it. He makes a pouch out of part of his cape and pours the liquid into it. Then he goes insubstantial to phase into the giant body, heading for the heart from where the serum will be pumped throughout the bloodstream. Once there he releases the chemical and leaves.
it only takes 5 minutes for Hank Pym to shrink back to normal size and wake up. He immediately rushes in to the hospital to see how Jan is. And finds that she came out of her coma just 5 minutes ago!