Tag Archives: superheroes

April 14, 2022 · 8:38 pm

CAPTAIN AMERICA CHAPTER LINKS

Somewhat belatedly, here are links to each installment of Balladeer’s Blog’s look at 1970s classics for Captain America and the Falcon.

ca f 156ONE: This four-part story dealt with Cap and Falc taking on the revived 1950s substitutes for Cap and Bucky. The worldviews of two Captain Americas from different decades came into conflict. Click HERE.

TWO: A three-part tale pitting our heroes against the Viper and the supervillain team called Crime Wave. Plus Captain America gains Spider-Man level strength. (That higher strength level lasted from 1973-1978.) Click HERE.

THREE: These three issues saw Captain America and the Falcon go up against the new supervillain Solarr as well as Captain America’s old foe Doctor Faustus. All this and the return of Peggy Carter! Click HERE. Continue reading →

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April 9, 2022 · 12:02 am

IRON MAN: 1970s CLASSICS 2 – THANOS, SUB-MARINER AND THE BLOOD BROTHERS

For Part One of these Iron Man 1970s classics click HERE.

im 54IRON MAN Vol 1 #54 (January 1973)

Title: Sub-Mariner: Target for Death

Villain: Moon Dragon (Her first appearance)

NOTE: This issue was co-written and co-illustrated by Bill Everett, who created the Sub-Mariner back in 1939 (BEFORE Aqua-Man), when Marvel Comics was known as Timely Comics.

Synopsis: We pick up an unknown amount of time after the previous issue. Tony Stark is now in Seattle, restructuring much of the Stark International corporate activities there to fit into his company’s new direction of no weapons manufacturing.

Our hero reflects to himself how the mysterious new supervillain the Black Lama escaped in our previous installment after his disciple Raga was defeated. (The Black Lama will emerge as a major adversary of Iron Man in the near future.)

Moon DragonElsewhere, deep below the waters of the Pacific Ocean, a vessel constructed through the superior technology of the Eternals of Titan travels like a submarine for the moment. This vessel launches a futuristic satellite into orbit, a satellite with cloaking tech and other capabilities.

On board that subaquatic vessel is Moon Dragon (Heather Douglas), currently using the idiotic nom de guerre “Madame MacEvil.” (LMAO) Besides the stupid name, Marvel’s writers had clearly not yet fully decided on her backstory or on what role she would play in the Thanos War being set up in this issue. Continue reading →

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April 1, 2022 · 3:48 am

IRON MAN: 1970s CLASSICS 1 – THE BLACK LAMA AND RAGA, SON OF FIRE

robert downey jr iron manWeekends are the time for Balladeer’s Blog’s escapist forays into superheroes, who seem to be everywhere these days. This time around it will be a multi-week look at Iron Man and one of his most memorable story runs from the 1970s.

im 52IRON MAN Vol 1 #52 (November 1972)

Title: Raga, Son of Fire

Villains: The Black Lama and Raga, Son of Fire

NOTE: This is still the decades-long period of time when Tony Stark covered up his identity as Iron Man by pretending publicly that the armored superhero was really his high-tech bodyguard. That explanation allayed suspicion about why Iron Man so often showed up wherever Tony Stark was at the time. 

Synopsis: This issue starts off with Tony Stark in his Iron Man armor using his high-tech training room at Stark Industries Headquarters on Long Island. Our hero uses this hidden area as a testing ground for every upgrade he adds to his armor.

rdj as tony starkThis afternoon all of the destructive devices and traps are overcome by Iron Man’s latest improvements. The test session over with, Tony Stark catches a flight to California. With his engagement to long-time girlfriend Marianne Rodgers called off recently our hero is off on a vacation.

He starts partying with other members of the Jet Set in the on-board lounge during his flight westward. With Tony once again available – and with his secret heart transplant working perfectly – he returns to his old playboy ways. The women on board vie with each other for Stark’s attention, smitten with his looks, brains and immense wealth. Continue reading →

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March 26, 2022 · 12:03 am

LUKE CAGE, POWER MAN: EARLY 1970s STORIES

power man pictureSuperheroes continue to dominate pop culture right now, and as I’ve often said, I think hero tales work best when set in their original time period.

Here is Balladeer’s Blog’s look at the earliest stories about Luke Cage, who started out as Hero for Hire before Marvel Comics changed his name to Power Man.

hero for hire 1HERO FOR HIRE Vol 1 #1 (June 1972)

Title: Out of Hell – A Hero

Villains: Diamondback, Shades and Comanche

Synopsis: Carl Lucas, a black man from New York, was framed for drug possession by his former friend Willis Stryker. While serving his sentence at horrific Seagate Prison in Georgia, Carl volunteered to be the subject of medical experimentation intended to create super-powered warriors for the government.

Albert Rackham, a racist prison guard with a grudge against Lucas had tampered with the experimental device hoping to kill him. Instead, Carl gained super-strength and bullet-proof skin.

cage picUsing those powers, Lucas escaped Seagate Prison but misled the authorities into thinking he died in the ocean while trying to get away. With Carl Lucas pronounced dead, our main character settled in New York City under the name Luke Cage and became a literal Hero for Hire, using his superpowers to earn a living.

After making a positive name for himself in a few fairly routine cases, Luke attracts the attention of the crime boss called Diamondback … who is really Willis Stryker, the friend who framed Carl Lucas years earlier. Continue reading →

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March 18, 2022 · 4:19 pm

CAPTAIN AMERICA & THE FALCON: 1970s CLASSICS 12 – THE FINALE; CAP RETURNS AND THE RED SKULL STRIKES

For Part One of this series click HERE.

ca f 183CAPTAIN AMERICA & THE FALCON Vol 1 #183 (March 1975)

Title: Nomad No More (A play on Captain America No More, the title of the story when Steve Rogers gave up being Cap.)

Villains: The Red Skull, Viper’s hoped-for disciples and Gamecock (First Appearance)

Note: The previous issue’s cliffhanger presented the Falcon and the “newest” would-be Captain America – Roscoe Simons – caught by surprise and at the mercy of the returned Red Skull, back after a several year absence. 

Synopsis: This issue picks up three days later as Nomad (Steve Rogers) has returned from Seattle and is currently battling the brand new costumed supervillain called Gamecock and his two sidekicks. The fight is taking place on a rooftop in Harlem during the day.

nomad fighting gamecockDialogue from the four combatants lets us know that Nomad came to Harlem looking for the Falcon and hasn’t been able to find him. Gamecock and his two underlings make it clear they were looking for Falcon, too, to kill him. Continue reading →

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March 11, 2022 · 8:30 pm

CAPTAIN AMERICA & THE FALCON: 1970s CLASSICS 11 – NOMAD, THE NEW SERPENT SQUAD AND SUB-MARINER

For Part One of this series click HERE.

ca f 180CAPTAIN AMERICA & THE FALCON Vol 1 #180 (December 1974)

Title: The Coming of the Nomad

Villains: The New Serpent Squad

NOTE: This week’s look at 3 issues and next week’s look at 4 issues will wrap up my look at Captain America & the Falcon’s 1970s classics, as the various storylines reach their finale.

Synopsis: We pick up shortly after the end of the previous issue. It is nighttime and Steve Rogers (Captain America) has just parted company with his former fellow Avenger Hawkeye (Clint Barton). Hawkeye had posed as a villain called the Golden Archer and waged a vendetta against Steve Rogers to rekindle his interest in superheroing.

After revealing his true identity, Hawkeye convinced Steve to go back to being a superhero, just NOT Captain America, since he was so disillusioned now. He could just become a new hero with an all-new pseudonym.

Thrilled with the idea, Steve hurriedly walks back to the New York City apartment he shares with former S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Sharon Carter. He starts making plans for how to go about creating his new superhero “brand.” Continue reading →

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March 4, 2022 · 12:39 am

CAPTAIN AMERICA & THE FALCON: 1970s CLASSICS 10 – TWO LUCIFERS AND THE GOLDEN ARCHER

For Part One of this series click HERE.

ca f 178CAPTAIN AMERICA & THE FALCON Vol 1 #178 (October 1974)

Title: If the Falcon Should Fall …

Villains: The two-in-one Lucifers

Synopsis: This issue picks up the night following the end of our previous installment. After the Falcon fought the original alien Lucifer two nights ago and the two Lucifers the previous night, this third night finds the Lucifers attacking the Falcon while he and his hawk Redwing fly around on their nightly patrol of Harlem.

As the fight goes on, one of the Lucifers reminds our hero that they have fought the X-Men on two occasions and Iron Man on a third. He and his shared identity in another body anticipate no great trouble dealing with the lone Falcon. Continue reading →

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February 26, 2022 · 1:08 am

CAPTAIN AMERICA & THE FALCON: 1970s CLASSICS 9 – CAP QUITS AND THE ALIEN LUCIFER RETURNS

For Part One of this series click HERE.

ca f 176CAPTAIN AMERICA & THE FALCON Vol 1 #176 (August 1974)

Title: Captain America No More

Villain: Steve Rogers’ drama queen tendency to quit being Captain America every so many years. This was already the SECOND time he had pulled this.

Synopsis: Captain America, still reeling from the monumental revelation about the leader of the now-defeated Secret Empire, has been contemplating whether or not his disillusionment is strong enough to drive him to quit being Captain America.

Avengers 125NOTE: In spite of my joke above, I do recognize that THIS time that Cap quit let the Marvel Comics writers explore competing nationwide feelings of the time period. I would argue that this time also should have been the last time this gimmick was pulled. Everybody always knows that Steve Rogers will go back to being Captain America no matter how many times he quits.

While weighing his decision, he motorcycled from Washington DC to New York City, where he and his fellow Avengers fought alongside Captain Marvel and Drax the Destroyer in the first Thanos War (1973-1974). He was also still with the Avengers when they faced the supervillains Klaw and Solarr.

This issue picks up late that same night, after the Avengers’ official farewell dinner for the Black Panther, who was temporarily leaving the team to devote all his attention to Killmonger’s uprising in Wakanda. Cap stands on the rooftop of Avengers Mansion, still engaged in soul-searching. Continue reading →

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February 18, 2022 · 10:20 pm

CAPTAIN AMERICA & THE FALCON: 1970s CLASSICS 8 – FINAL BATTLES WITH THE SECRET EMPIRE AND MOONSTONE

For Part One of this series click HERE. 

ca f 174CAPTAIN AMERICA & THE FALCON Vol 1 #174 (June 1974)

Title: It’s Always Darkest …

Villains: The Secret Empire

Synopsis: This story picks up right where the previous issue left off. The disguised Captain America and the Falcon, posing as drifting, mutant-hating goons for hire have been recruited into the Secret Empire. That villainous organization has been plotting to take over the United States and has also been hunting down and capturing mutants in furtherance of that goal.

The Empire’s operative Number 13 is escorting the disguised Cap and Falc via elevator into their secret headquarters far beneath the New Mexico desert. (Where the group has been lurking ever since their first battles with the Hulk in the 1960s.)

As our undercover heroes are led by Number 13 throughout the high-tech and armament-loaded lair, Captain America reflects to himself how this whole convoluted saga began with the public campaign against him by the Viper and his crooked colleagues on Madison Avenue. Continue reading →

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February 11, 2022 · 10:37 pm

CAPTAIN AMERICA & THE FALCON: 1970s CLASSICS 7 – MOONSTONE, BANSHEE AND THE X-MEN

For Part One of this series click HERE.

ca f 171CAPTAIN AMERICA & THE FALCON Vol 1 #171 (March 1974)

Title: Bust-Out!

Villains: Stone-Face and Moonstone

NOTE: This is the first story with the Falcon using his new wings in action.

Synopsis: We pick up right where we left off last time. The country is heatedly divided regarding the jailed Captain America’s guilt or innocence on the murder charge. We readers know that Cap was framed by Moonstone and Quentin Harderman (a former colleague of the supervillain the Viper) as the capstone of their smear campaign against our hero.

falcon and redwingA gang of armed men have blasted their way into Captain America’s jail cell, claiming to be on his side and offering to help him escape. Cap is torn, apprehensive that people will conclude he’s guilty if he escapes but fearful that if he stays nobody will be able to prove his innocence.

Our hero ultimately decides to stay in his cell to let the legal process play out. It is then that the supposedly “pro-Cap” armed men reveal that they are really part of Harderman’s organization and tell him he has no choice: come with them or they’ll kill him. Continue reading →

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