Finally. After dozens of mediocre issues, we finally have some solid Avengers stories. And some of the upcoming ones will be legendary. Issue #50 starts with some good old fashioned arguing. Followed by some “girls just wanna get dick” reverie, in the grand old tradition of Stan Lee.
I love these old books, but this can be a bit much to take.
After that, it is basically a Hercules solo story, featuring huge and muscular Gods—which is tailor made for Buscema’s art.
At the end of the story, Herc stays in Olympus. Which means The Avengers are down to Ant-Man (Hank Pym lost the power to be Goliath), Wasp (who just wants Hank to quit superheroing and settle down with her), and Hawkeye.
And there’s a letter….
Yep, that’s Tony Isabella: Future creator of Goliath (black version) and Black Lightning for DC. In fact, it was letters like this—to Roy Thomas’ comics—that led Thomas to hire Isabella as an editor, just a few years later in 1972.
I am the proud owner of FIVE copies of this particular issue of ‘The Avengers’, which has nothing to do with the issue’s numbering- it, rather, has EVERYTHING to do with the star of this issue’s show- the Mighty Hercules, the most underrated of ALL the Mighty Avengers! Hercules, you see, is ( forever ) living proof positive that there are very, very few problems in life that cannot be solved through a practical application of brute force! Yeah, yeah, I know we get the same principle with the Incredible Hulk, but the Hulk is unfocused, and at times, quite savage. I know Marvel puts a lot of stock in the term, and concept, of “savagery”, but Hercules is not a savage, and does not go around solving problems utilizing savagery. Hercules is actually quite intelligent, and even has his own web-site! ( see “The Intelligent Hulk” and “The Incredible Hercules” series ) Even though the Mighty Thor is unquestionably Marvel-Earth’s greatest superhero, I feel that Hercules is Marvel’s best “utility” character, an all-around great guy who gets the job done, time after time after time, using nothing but force of arm! Fascinating! As for this particular issue, I agree with Mr. Ekko when he states that the legendary “Jumbo” John Buscema is at his best in rendering all the gods of the Royal Court of Olympus! In this issue, Hercules, once again, finds himself in a seemingly-impossible crisis which he, once again, triumphs over using an heroic combination of unmatchable strength, ( sorry, Ares ) and unmatchable courage! This is what the Lion of Olympus DOES, and does BETTER than anybody ELSE!!! ( even Thor- sorry, Goldilocks ) It seems to me that Roy ( “The Boy” ) Thomas had gone to an awful lot of trouble to work Hercules onto the Assemblers across the previous year only to discard him at the conclusion of this epochal fiftieth issue. How disappointing!! And it’s not like he wasn’t desperately needed! By the end of this issue, the Avengers’ line-up was down to Hawkeye and the Wasp, who are great Avengers, but, let’s face it, by this point in their super-careers, they got by using gimmicks! ( Hawkeye’s gadget arrowheads, and the Wasp’s “stings”- basically, just a fancy, high-tech air-gun weapon ) Goliath had lost HIS powers, and the Avengers were in just bad shape! The presence of Hercules at this time would have gone a long way towards solving this problem! In the following issue, both Thor and Iron Man would have to be called in to fill the ranks, even for just one issue. Around this time, Stan Lee began lobbying for an android Avenger on the team, because the concept of androids was revolutionary as of the late 1960’s, and Stan was determined that Marvel would remain at the forefront of all matters regarding superheroics and science-fiction. So, Hercules had to go in order to make room on the team for a super-powerful android, who turned out to be the Vision. The Vision is cool, and all, but personally, I would rather be grooving to the adventures of the Olympian Prince of Power! Hercules would not return to these pages for a full forty-nine issues ( and FIVE YEARS ) later!! That’s too long for such a great character!! But I remain a member of the ‘Hercules Faithful’, and I will continue to treasure my five copies of ‘Avengers’ #50, as well as my many other Marvel Comics featuring the awesome Lion of Olympus! Excelsior!