FANTASTIC FOUR #259

"CHOICES"
Story & Art: John Byrne | Colorist: Glynis Wein | Letterer: Jim Novak
Editor: Bob Budiansky | Editor-in-Chief: Jim Shooter

The Plot: In disguise as “Susan Benjamin”, Sue visits an open house in Belle Port, Connecticut, and puts in a purchase offer on behalf of her family. Meanwhile, the Thing lands at La Guardia Airport and takes a cab toward the Baxter Building, but he’s assaulted en route by Tyros the Terrible. Ben sends up a flare to summon help, and Johnny arrives on the scene.

Elsewhere, as Sue flies home from Connecticut in a Fantasticar, she is pulled aboard an airship commanded by Doctor Doom. Doom taunts her with a robot duplicate, then reveals to her the battle between Ben, Johnny, and Tyros. Sue exits the ship to go help them.

In space, the Sliver Surfer spots a transporter beam directed at New York, and heads toward Earth to investigate.

Sub-Plots & Continuity Notes: Following the Annual and last issue’s “Interlude”, this installment picks up exactly where FF #257 ended, as Sue walks into the house in Belle Port.

As noted above, Sue and Reed have assumed the last name of Benjamin for their secret identities, and they plan to move their family to Connecticut. While checking out the house, Sue meets a local girl named Katie Dwyer, who offers to babysit. A little internet research reveals that this seems to be the sister of comics artist Kieron Dwyer, who was John Byrne’s stepson in the eighties.

AVENGERS #236

"I WANT TO BE AN AVENGER!"
Writer: Roger Stern | Breakdowns: Al Milgrom | Finisher: Joe Sinnott
Letterer: Janice Chiang | Colorist: Carl Gafford | Editor: Mark Gruenwald
Editor-in-Chief: Jim Shooter

The Plot: Spider-Man breaks into Avengers Mansion to demonstrate his skill as a potential Avenger. But the group has little interest in his grandstanding and sends him packing as a priority alarm sounds. Outside the mansion, Spider-Man hitches a ride on the Avengers' departing quinjet and reveals himself when the heroes arrive at Project: Pegasus in upstate New York. Spider-Man helps Captain America, She-Hulk, and Starfox battle a group of rampaging Lava Men. Ultimately the fight ends when the Wasp and the Scarlet Witch arrive with Captain Marvel, who the Lava Men believe is their goddess. The Lava Men explain that their underground realm was pierced by Pegasus's magma tap, and the Avengers apologize.

Meanwhile, Captain Marvel's energy emissions have allowed the villainous Blackout to free himself from imprisonment within a device under study by the Pegasus scientists. Blackout teams up with fellow Pegasus inmate Moonstone, and together the duo springs Electro and the Rhino as well, and Moonstone prepares the villains to seize control of the Project's nuclear research dome.

THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #245

"SACRIFICE PLAY!"
Writer: Roger Stern | Artists: John Romita, Jr. & Dave Simons
Letterer: Joe Rosen | Colorist: Bob Sharen | Editor: Tom DeFalco
Editor-in-Chief: Jim Shooter

The Plot: Spider-Man begins his hunt for Lefty Donovan by speaking with District Attorney Blake Tower, but the D.A. is uncooperative. The wall-crawler next tries looking for info on Donovan at the Daily Bugle, but strikes out again. Finally, after additional weeks of searching, he visits Detective Lieutenant Lou Snyder, who provides Spider-Man with Donovan's file.

Meanwhile, a mysterious figure has completed Norman Osborn's strength formula, but it explodes in his face. He recuperates in the hospital while Spider-Man conducts his search, and then, after sneaking out and stealing a car, he heads for the Hobgoblin's former mansion on Long Island and enters a secret basement, where he dons the goblin's costume and heads for Times Square to get Spider-Man's attention at the same time the web-slinger is visiting Snyder.

Snyder informs Spider-Man of the Hobgoblin's rampage and the wall-crawler heads out to meet him. The goblin's strength gives him an unexpected edge, but Spider-Man soon regains the upper hand. He unmasks the Hobgoblin to find Lefty Donovan's face underneath, but just as Donovan is about to reveal the identity of the true Hobgoblin, his jet glider locks onto his feet and takes off, crashing him into a wall.

As the paramedics mop up, Spider-Man realizes that Donovan was simply a decoy, and the real Hobgoblin is still out there. And the Hobgoblin himself watches the news footage of Donovan's death, pleased that his guinea pig provided him with enough data to hopefully duplicate Osborn's formula again, this time without the resultant explosion.