One thing about the Marvel Universe that always attracted me from day one, was the way the saga blended from title to title and month to month. The Marvel Universe is a bunch of different comic books about different heroes and heroines, but it's mostly just one long story about a world in which these heroes live and die (and then live and die some more). It's that greater creation, the "Marvel Universe" itself that's so impressive in the final analysis.
One of the purest expressions of this was the origin of Hydra, the secret criminal organization that was the nemesis of Nick Fury and his stalwart Agents of SHIELD. Hydra was the initial enemy that sparked the recruitment of Fury and he and his agents defeated them after several issues of Strange Tales.
But they returned later, this time led by Baron Strucker, a Nazi villain from the original Fury WWII comic. This battle was exotic and even more exciting than the first one.
The origin of the secret organization was not in an issue of Strange Tales, but played out in the pages of Captain Savage and his Leatherneck Raiders. Specifically issues #2, 3, and 4 show how Hydra grew out of the Pacific war, an Asian and Nazi collaboration. For more details see this link.
They show how Baron Strucker took hold and how he developed plots and plans that wouldn't unfold completely until many decades later.
These issues wonderfully written by Gary Friedrich and drawn by Dick Ayers and Syd Shorese rarely get mentioned, but they are key stories in the developing saga of Hydra and of the Marvel Universe.
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Rip: I am not at all familiar with Capt. Savage, but the title sounds great. I am going to have to track some down. Thanks for the tip!
ReplyDeleteI'm happy to be the one to let you know about the great Captain Savage book. It's one of Marvel's little secrets from one of the top periods. I've mentioned this origin story in other forums and it seems it's a well-kept secret.
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