Hank Pym was able to become a whole new superhero just by adding two letters to his name.
In Tales to Astonish 49 (Nov. 1963), his 15th adventure, Ant-Man became Giant-Man.
I remember enjoying the story by writer/editor Stan Lee and artists Jack Kirby and Don Heck at the time. The switch seemed to give the character a whole new range of powers and possibilities, and firmly differentiate him from DC’s Atom, who was busy battling a tiny phantom double that month.
Giant-Man’s next few adventures provided a fresh angle on super-heroics by suggesting, logically, that super powers might involve a learning curve.
Pym proves awkward with abilities that are the opposite of the ones he had mastered as Ant-Man. He finds himself unable, for example, to defeat the mutant Human Top in repeated battles.
Yet the character somehow never achieved the dramatic potential suggested in that debut, and in Tales to Astonish 70 (August 1965), his feature was replaced by the Sub-Mariner’s, which I never much cared for. Despite his status as a milestone hero of comics’ Golden Age, Prince Namor in the 1960s seemed reduced to a tedious single note of haughtiness.
I’ll always wonder if Giant-Man’s feature might have continued — even spawning a solo Giant-Man title in Marvel’s big 1968 expansion— if Jack Kirby had been drawing it.
Ant-Man’s change would have one distant, happy echo. Fifty-three years later, the surprise transition from Ant-Man to Giant-Man would delight film audiences in Captain America: Civil War ($1.153 billion at the box office).
Johnny Williams wrote: Hank was one of my early Marvel favorites. I absolutely Hated some of the much later directions they elected to take his character in, especially the spousal abuse. That was just So unnecessary.
ReplyDeleteI as a writer myself realize that each and every one of us has to tell the stories we want to tell, but, I - we the consumers Don't always have to approve if and when we feel the writer f_ _ked up. With Hank, they did.
Mark Engblom wrote: With the advantage of hindsight, it’s always been fascinating for me to see the seeds of Hank’s troubled future planted so early in his history. The awkwardness you mentioned, combined with his always shifting names, costumes, and focus (I’m a superhero, no I’m a scientist, or maybe a scientist/superhero, no...), suggested a guy who, at the very least, wasn’t cut out for the superhero game or, at worst, someone with deep, underlying problems.
ReplyDeleteJohnny Williams wrote: Hank had as an 'original Avenger' the same problem 'Colossal Boy' of 'The Legion of Super-Heroes' has.
ReplyDeleteBoth have a giant's strength, which is formidable, and in Hank's case he was working alongside: a Thunder God, a man wearing an advanced servo-armor battle suit, and a green colored behemoth. In CB's case he hangs with: Kryptonians, and Daxamites.
The company they keep almost seems to make their 'giant's strength' irrelevant.
Gene Stuart wrote: I think Giant-Man was one of Marvel's great early heroes. The fact he kept re-inventing himself just showed what a genius he was, and a versatile character, Ant-Man to Giant-man to new Giant-Man to Goliath to Yellowjacket. Also, Lee was trying to do The Thin Man [or Hart-to-Hart to younger crowd] with Hank and Jan. He more or less succeeded. Happy Henry and his Whistlebait Wasp were a great couple.
ReplyDeleteCee Jay wrote: I really loved the early Hank and Janet dynamic. It was another unique idea in comics
ReplyDelete